EXPERT FRANKIE

All Eyes on Dettori as star jockey gives Europe timely boost with wonderful double at Breeders’ Cup in Kentucky

‘DETTORI UNDERLINED WHY HE IS THE TOP EUROPEAN RIDER’

EXPERT EYE arrowed home at Churchill Downs to give Frankie Dettori and Europe a first win of a huge day at the Breeders’ Cup. Little more than an hour later the Italian steered Arc winner Enable to glory in the Turf.

Both horses carried the colours of Khalid Abdullah in Kentucky as Dettori underlined just why he is Europe’s most successful rider at this meeting with 14 winners.

Dettori launched a powerful surge from the Michael Stoute-trained colt to claim his second win in the Mile. The other one was his first ever Breeders’ Cup win — with Barathea in 1994.

Then Dettori drove home Enable to see off the Aidan O’Brien-trained Magical in a fantastic battle down the home straight as John Gosden’s horse became the first Arc winner to triumph at the Breeders’ Cup.

‘She’s conquered America and is the first one to do it! We had the rain and her wheels were spinning around the bends, so I took her wide to get the fresh ground and she got comfortable and found another gear. She’s amazing. She’s very special.’ said Dettori of the horse who will stay in training next year.

It was a rare night without glory for Ballydoyle, who have become used to scoring on the biggest day in racing. Lost Treasure was a never dangerous seventh in the Turf Sprint, while Magic Wand and Athena could only manage fourth and fifth in the Filly and Mare Turf.

A place further back in sixth was Dermot Weld’s Eziyra, with Gavin Cromwell’s Princess Yaiza running to her price of 25-1 back in ninth.

Behind Expert Eye in the Mile, a quartet of O’Brien horses failed to land a blow, while Mendelssohn weakened behind Classic winner Accelerate trained by John Sadler.

Expert Eye, a one-time Classic hope when a spectacular winner as a two-year-old, had struggled to deliver the big win but he has it now after ultimately holding off runnerup Catapult. It was an eighth Breeders’ Cup win for Stoute and a first in the Mile. The success followed the victory of Charlie Appleby’s Line Of Duty in Friday’s Juvenile Turf.

Favourite Wild Illusion was narrowly edged out by Sistercharlie in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf last night but trainer Appleby could still reflect on a good meeting and an even bigger season for the filly’s Godolphin owners.

Appleby now flies to Australia to saddle runners in Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup, in which O’Brien will run The Cliffsofmoher, Yucatan and Rostropovich.

But with the win of Best of Days overnight in Australia taking the global total to 29 Group One wins for Godolphin in 2018, the best of days are really back for the Sheik’s team. The years in the racing wilderness are a fading memory after a re-organisation and re-focusing plan which is delivering results.

It was also a result arising out of the decision of Sheik Mohammed to stop boycotting the sires of the rival Coolmore Stud after a 12-year gap. Line of Duty, a son of Coolmore super sire Galileo, cost 400,000gns and is the most significant of the Sheik’s Coolmore-related purchases since his change of policy.

Hugh Anderson, chief executive of Godolphin UK, said: ‘Line of Duty is an example of the change in policy we have had this year and the most significant.

‘The success this year is what we should be aiming for. There are 29 Group Ones but within them some really good group ones. We had a fantastic Arc day and have won races like the Dubai World Cup, Epsom Derby, National Stakes and here at the Breeders’ Cup.’

Line of Duty now looks a Derby candidate. Aidan O’Brien never tires of relating the fighting spirit that super sire Galileo has passed on to some of his best stock and the Godolphin colt seems to have inherited that resilience.