DDF Spring Trials brings royal success
dubai — Queen Elizabeth graced the second day of the Dubai Duty Free Spring Trials weekend on Saturday to see her three-year-old colts Call To Mind and Musical Terms make their debuts in the two divisions of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships Maiden Stakes.
Call To Mind did the queen proud. Ryan Moore forced the three-year-old’s handsome head in front close home and when they returned to the winners enclosure received the loudest applause of the day.
Queen Elizabeth received the winning owner’s trophy from Dubai Duty Free’s executive vice chairman and CEO Colm McLoughlin with executive vice president – corporate services Salah Tahlak, and marketing assistant Elisa Yana also present.
McLoughlin presented a 25th anniversary Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships book to Newbury Racecourse chairman Dominic Burke and his wife Valda to mark the longstanding association between Dubai Duty Free and the Berkshire course which began 22 years ago.
The Queen’s runner in the second division of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships Maiden Stakes, Musical Terms, was also trained by William Haggas and ridden by Moore. He finished strongly in second place but just too late to catch 100-1 shot Duke Of Bronte — a surprise even greater than the 25-1 winner on the first day of the meeting — truly full of surprises.
Earlier Pacify, owned by The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, made his return from long absence in the Spring Cup.
Pacify was out of the places in a hotly contested handicap but made encouraging late progress from the rear of the big field.
John Gosden is riding a tidal wave of success and he took the £60,000 Group 3 Dubai Duty Free Finest Surprise and the £60,000 Dubai Duty Free Stakes also Group Three. Richard Hannon maintained the run of father and son stable victories — eight now — in the day’s other feature, the Group Three JLT Greenham Stakes.
Frankie Dettori delighted the large Newbury crowd with a signature ‘flying dismount’ from the John Gosden-trained Dabyah in Group 3 Dubai Duty Free Stakes. Dabyah, who will now be aimed at the French Classics, was returning to the scene of her victory in last September’s Dubai Duty Free Full Of Surprises Stakes and has since been placed in Group 1 company in Chantilly’s Marcel Boussac.