The Jungle Boy confirmed his fitness for Wednesday’s $500,000 Auckland Cup with a narrow win in the final cup lead-up.

Relishing the slow track in the Nathans Memorial (2200m) at Ellerslie, The Jungle Boy fought strongly to nose out last year’s Auckland Cup winner Titch, with cup favourite Shez Sinsational one and a quarter lengths back in third.

The Jungle Boy has performed well in top company this season, running second in the New Zealand Cup (3200m) and third in the Wellington Cup (2400m) and his co-owner Kim Clotworthy was hopeful he’d run well again on Wednesday.

“I think he’s a decent stayer and that’ll tighten him up nicely for Wednesday,” Clotworthy said of the six-year-old.

“We know he’ll run two miles (3200m) but Auckland Cups are very hard to win. Ellerslie hasn’t been his best track, he hasn’t raced that well here, but I think he’s learning. Like me, he’s a slow learner, but he’s learning.”

Titch fought well under apprentice jockey Lisa Whelan, who was claiming 2kg, to nearly grab the win on the line and he looks in good shape to defend his cup title.

Shez Sinsational, the cup favourite after two weight-for-age group one 2000m victories, couldn’t sprint with the first two on the slow track but fought well and meets The Jungle Boy on 2.5kg better terms on Wednesday.

“She got through it but not with 59kg on her back,” jockey James McDonald said of her run on Saturday.

“Put her on a good track and she would have sprinted straight past them.”