Blake Shinn tried his pants off to win the opening race at Canterbury on Miss Royale on Thursday. Literally.

As Shinn drove

The Melbourne Cup-winning jockey lost his strides as he sat down to give Miss Royale a couple of cracks with the whip in an effort to run down Defender. At the same time he gave his rivals an unplanned look at another crack.

"I was more worried about winning the race. They [the pants] went just after the start and there was nothing I could do," Shinn said. "I think a lot of people are going to have a bit of fun with this, but they can't say I wasn't focused and went to the line."