Highly talented four-year-old Fighter Command is lucky to be racing let alone winning.

The Jess Tubbs trained pacer burst onto the scene as a three-year-old last year securing a berth in the world’s richest race, the $2.1m TAB Eureka.

In early September just days before the race Fighter Command was rushed to the vet and underwent surgery on a twisted intestine and was subsequently in a fight for his life.

The son of Always B Miki won the battle and returned to the winner’s stall at Melton on Saturday night at his third run back.

Greg Sugars pressed forward on Fighter Command to assume the place outside the leader Repelling with a lap to travel before surging to the lead around the home turn.

Fighter Command ($2.50 fav) reeled off a 26.7 last 400 metres in scoring from Smoken Ace and Repelling in a mile rate of 1:55.0

Sugars said it was a huge relief that Fighter Command was getting back to his best.

“We thought we were going to lose him and we had no idea whether he would come back at all, and if he did comeback would he be anywhere near the same horse but the early signs are pretty good,” Sugars said.

“He felt a million dollars and once they settled and the lead time wasn’t excessive so I thought I would put him into the race-once I got there he always felt he had the race in his keeping,” he said.

Thirty minutes later Sugars was back in the winner’s circle after partnering classy race mare Rakero Rebel to hat trick of wins when she outsprinted her rivals in the CNR Router Bits Free For All.

Sent out a $1.90 favorite, Rakero Rebel enjoyed the run of the race on the back of the leader Yambukian whose driver Kate Gath turned the race into a frantic dash to the line.

Rakero Rebel sprint laned her way to victory snatching a length off Yambukian in a 26.5 last 400 metres to get up and score by a head in a mile rate of 1:52.4.

Sugars acknowledged the efforts of the first two horses across the line.

“It was a pretty solidly run race from the get go so that even speaks more volumes of being able to get home that quick,” Sugars said.

“The winner ran a great race and she really had to stretch to pick him up, it was a great run by both horses,” he said.

Sugars believes the six-year-old is capable of competing at the elite level.

“She’s run third to Leap To Fame in a Cranbourne Cup, she’s taken on good quality horses of both sex-she’s a really nice mare and pretty special,” he said.

“The Queen Elizabeth in Sydney is her next main target and there a lead up races for that, one in two weeks and one in three weeks for which we have to choose.

After that we are thinking of taking a team up to Queensland for the Inter Dominion carnival and there is a chance we may throw her in the deep end if all goes well.”