World Approval has sights set on Super Saturday race
CLASSY: MARK CASSE’S STAR IS BEING AIMED AT THE DUBAI TURF ON WORLD CUP NIGHT
Thunder Snow is tipped to win round two of the Maktoum Challenge tomorrow.
Canadian trainer Mark Casse, who broke new ground when sending out 2015 Breeders’ Cup Mile winner Tepin to slam the Europeans in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot the following year, now has Dubai in his sights.
Casse has never been to the UAE but his latest superstar World Approval, who ended last season with three consecutive Grade 1 victories – highlight being that same 1600m global crown at Del Mar – is being aimed at the $6-million (R72,387,900) Dubai Turf at Meydan on 31 March.
World Approval, who polled 211 of the 250 votes to be crowned America’s champion male turf horse of 2017 at last month’s Eclipse Awards, has just returned to Casse’s Palm Meadows barn in Florida after his break at ownerbreeder Charlotte Weber’s farm in Ocala.
The plan is to prepare for his trip to Dubai in the Tampa Bay Stakes on Saturday and connections have no qualms about World Approval coping with either the extra distance or the sweeping turns at Meydan because he glided around the bends when winning the Canadian Mile in Toronto.
However, early signs at this year’s Dubai Carnival suggest that Godolphin will again be looking to make home advantage count, having mopped up 13 races at the four meetings so far – seven going to Saeed bin Suroor and six to Charlie Appleby.
Bin Suroor has the biggest threat to World Approval domination in classy Benbatl, who has already won twice at the carnival, being even more impressive in last week’s Group 2 Al Rashidiya than in the Group 3 Singspiel Stakes.
“Now it will be back to Group 1, with the Jebel Hatta on Super Saturday hopefully being the stepping stone to the Dubai Turf,” declared Bin Suroor, who, like everyone else at Meydan, was “very impressed” by the finishing kick Benbatl produced en route to his 3.75-length victory.
It was only a handicap that Gold Star won when topping up Bin Suroor’s celebrations in the finale, but so impressive was this lightly raced four-year-old under a typically confident ride from Christophe Soumillon that connections will surely be thumbing through the Pattern book, and the Group 2 Dubai City of Gold on Super Saturday (10 March) must look tempting.
One from this race who should definitely go in the notebook is Appleby’s new recruit Eynhallow, who encountered more traffic problems than Gold Star, yet flew home in fourth place.
Eynhallow, who joined Godolphin from Roger Charlton, was only beaten 0.50 lengths and was two lengths clear 10 strides after the line, so looks a winner waiting to happen.
Appleby enjoyed another cracking night, winning the Group 2 Al Fahidi Fort with Jungle Cat, having earlier seen Boynton make a sizzling debut on the dirt to upset Doug Watson’s Godolphin Mile candidate Kimbear in the 1600m handicap.
Jungle Cat was a surprise 10-1 winner and had to battle hard to master Mike de Kock’s Janoobi and Appleby will talk to Sheikh Mohammed before making plans – though this 1400m looks to be the winner’s optimum trip and there are not many avenues down that road.
In any event Boynton was by far the more exciting prospect for World Cup Night, having beaten Kimbear fair and square and both William Buick, celebrating his fifth winner at this year’s carnival, and Appleby were bubbling with enthusiasm.
“He’s bred for the dirt and gave me a great feel on the surface – he could not have been more professional,” said Buick, while Appleby added: “Boynton was a smart twoyear-old in Europe and then had a few setbacks. But having him gelded and switching surfaces seems to have done the trick.
“The Firebreak Stakes looks the obvious route and if all goes well there we’ll give Kimbear his rematch in the Godolphin Mile.”
No fewer than 15 nominations from the USA for the $10-million (R120,469,800) Dubai World Cup has got everyone at Meydan excited, but there is so much quality at this year’s Carnival that we all look forward to Thursdays at this time of the year with added anticipation and the fifth meeting this week is no exception.
The feature is round two of the Maktoum Challenge and though Heavy Metal produced one of the most amazing performances of the carnival when annihilating Thunder Snow and North America in round one, he’ll find it tougher over this extra 300m.
Thunder Snow, last year’s UAE Derby winner, could never go the pace with Heavy Metal last time but the winner had a fitness edge and over this longer distance I am firmly in the THUNDER SNOW camp.
Only a nose separated Godolphin’s WINTER LIGHTNING and Doug Watson’s Rayya in the 1000 Guineas Trial and though Pat Dobbs thinks he can gain his revenge over this extra 200m, Winter Lightning was making her seasonal reappearance whereas Rayya had a run under her belt, so I’ll also stick with the Boys in Blue for the UAE’s first classic of the season.
The first four home in last month’s Dubawi Stakes renew rivalry in the Group 3 Al Shindagha Sprint.
The score between Comicas and Muarrab this season is one apiece and the pair may again dominate proceedings, but the leaders went a kamikaze pace last time and more patience from Jim Crowley could enable MUARRAB to come out on top.
Godolphin are also keen on the chance of ZAMAN in the Meydan Classic.
This colt chased home one of Britain’s best youngsters last season in Expert Eye at Glorious Goodwood and has caught the eye at morning exercise since arriving in Dubai.
Trainers in the UK are finetuning their horses in readiness for Lingfield’s £1-million (R16,848,243) All-Weather Finals Championship Day on 30 March but while Utmost and Victory Bond fought out the finish of last Saturday’s Winter Derby Trial, neither looked ideally suited by the sharp track.
Both will probably take in the Winter Derby on 24 February en route to those Easter Finals, but we’d be better off playing up last week’s winnings on KACHY in the £150,000 (R2,527,236) All-Weather Final on the big day.“Kachy loves left-handed tracks – he’s only won at Chester, Goodwood and Lingfield – and he’ll take some catching whatever the draw.”