BLUE POINT ON POINT IN MEYDAN SPRINT
Godolphin’s Blue Point admonished the demons of last year, by making a triumphant return at the Meydan Racecourse on Thursday night, while handler Charlie Appleby and William Buick tasted a fantastic treble.
Making only his second run at the iconic venue since he faced a veterinary scratch on Dubai World Cup night, the five-year-old with pedigree from the highly-acclaimed Shamardal, won the Group 2 Meydan Sprint on turf in the seventh race meeting of the Dubai World Cup Carnival.
Blue Point, who triumphed at Royal Ascot in the King’s Stand Stakes, for his maiden Group 1 win, won the dash, the equivalent of the Al Quoz Sprint, by five lengths.
Faatinah, saddled by David Hayes and the ride of Jim Crowley, was second, with Ali Rashid Al Rayhi’s Portamento, third, two lengths behind Faatinah.
“He’s a nice horse, this fellow,” said Appleby. “Not having been fully tuned up, he ran well. This horse is going to come forward and come into his own this year. He’s a five-yearold now and he’s a professional. William asked him to pick up and he ran a professional race. After this is the Al Quoz. He’s not overly exposed, really. Last year, he wasn’t over-raced. It’s going to be a fun season for him,” he added.
Meanwhile, Buick said: “It was a nice comeback opportunity for him and he did it very comfortably, he did everything right. Lovely to see him come back like that. He has probably matured a bit and the biggest difference is he is coming here now a Group 1 winner this time. He has proved himself and he feels like a very confident horse. No question about it.”
Faatinah was quick off the gates and set the pace for most of the race with Mike de Kodak’s Mujaafy, Blue Point and Rebel Streak, Ali Jan’s charge jousting for position.
With 500 metres left to go, Faatinah still led but it was primed for a tussle between him and Blue Point.
And with 200 metres to the winning post, Blue Point surged ahead and crossed the line for seventh victory in 16 starts.
Soon after, Appleby and Buick won backto-back races — the inaugural Meydan Trophy and the Group 2 Balanchine — with Art Du Val and Poetic Charm respectively.
It swelled Appleby’s tally at the top of the Carnival standings to 13 wins, while the racing operation notched their 18th victory.
Meanwhile, six-time UAE Champion Trainer Doug Watson’s Muntazah, the mount of Jim Crowley, landed the Group 3 Firebreak Stakes on dirt, winning by 4.5 lengths over Satish Seemar’s Secret Ambition.
Earlier, Af Al Sajanjle proved to be a class apart, destroying the rest of the field to clinch the Mazrat Al Ruwayah, a Group 2 contest for Purebred Arabians.
The six-year-old from Af Al Buraq, the Ernst Oertel won by a whopping 9.5 lengths under UAE Champion Jockey Tadhg O’Shea in the eight-furlong affair on dirt.
Although he couldn’t equal last year’s winner Paddy Day’s time of 1:47:00s, clocking 51 seconds more, it was Af Al Sajanjle’s third win in 16 starts.
It was a nice comeback opportunity for him and he did it very comfortably, he did everything right. Lovely to see him come back like that. He has probably matured a bit and the biggest difference is he is coming here now a Group 1 winner this time William Buick