Benbatl heads into battle at Dubai’s Carnival
– The high-class miler Benbatl, trained by Saeed bin Suroor, makes his eagerly awaited comeback in the Singspiel Stakes tomorrow, a race he landed two years ago on his Meydan debut.
Run over 1800m on turf, this Group 2 contest along with the opening round of the three-race series the Al Maktoum Challenge, headlines the second night of the Dubai World Cup Carnival.
Benbatl, winner of three of his four starts at Dubai’s flagship track, has to concede weight to his five rivals on his return from a short break.
An Impressive winner of the Joel Stakes following a lengthy layoff, he struggled badly on his latest appearance in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes in October, trailing in a remote last of 16 behind King Of Change when toiling on the testing going at Ascot.
Suroor has his team in rude health and Benbatl is a confident selection to bounce back, and take his tally in the UAE to four. He can justify cramped odds and cement his claims as a leading player for the $6-million Dubai Turf in March.
Mike de Kock has enjoyed success in the Singspiel Stakes, thanks to the victories of Mahbooba (2012), Mushreq (2014) and Light The Lights three years ago.
The South African trainer saddles Majestic Mambo and has booked Dane O’Neill.
Majestic Mambo progressed steadily last season, posting his best effort on the final fixture of the season when beaten a neck by Ajwad at Meydan in April. He will need to step up considerably on that form to upstage Benbatl.
Dream Castle was one of the stars at last year’s DWCC, reeling off a hat-trick of wins including the Singspiel Stakes after being gelded. He flopped twice in Australia in the second half of the season, finishing down the field in two runs, the most recent in the Crystal Mile where he was found to have broken a blood vessel. If he recaptures his form, he should emerge the chief threat to stable companion Benbatl.
Round I of the Maktoum Challenge is an enthralling contest, Race 6, with top local dirt stars Muntazah, Secret Ambition and Kimbear tackling last year’s impressive winner North America, trained by Satish Seemar.
The winner of seven of his 12 races on Meydan’s main track, North America hails from a yard that landed last week’s Group 3 feature with Gladiator King, and he makes plenty of appeal in the hands of Richard Mullen.
Secret Ambition, Seemar’s second runner, is a tough and likeable performer. He caused a minor shock on his seasonal debut in the Dubai Creek Mile, defeating the reopposing Kimbear and five others under top weight when finding plenty for pressure.
Stepping up in class, he needs to find further improvement and will have to produce a career-best to take the prize.
The Doug Watson-trained Muntazah has made giant strides since switching to dirt, highlighted by his impressive victories in the Firebreak and Burj Nahaar, both over today’s course and distance, last term.
He has a plum draw in stall one and is fancied to put up a bold show. His stablemate Kimbear made a pleasing comeback and was entitled to need the race, returning from a 264-day break.
He offers Eachway value in the hands of Pat Dobbs, the leading rider at Meydan this season.
Heavy Metal, the 2018 winner, was bitterly disappointing on his seasonal debut behind Secret Ambition. He dropped away tamely and eventually came home a remote last of seven. Now in the twilight of his career, this tenyear-old makes very little appeal, despite the decent form of his trainer, Salem bin Ghadayer.
William Buick had to sit out the opening night of the DWCC last week, having picked up a lengthy suspension in Japan last month.
He enjoyed plenty of success at Meydan last winter, most notably for his boss Charlie Appleby. The pair team up in the opening 1600m handicap on turf, Race 5, with the unexposed Zakouski.
Impressive winner on his juvenile debut at Kempton in late 2018, he attracted support at big prices in the ante-post market for last year’s 2000 Guineas.
He failed to line-up in the opening British Classic in May following his comeback fifth in the Craven Stakes.
He has been gelded since and is fancied to defy a lengthy spell on the sidelines off a very attractive handicap rating of 100.
The opening handicap on the programme, over 1200m on turf, looks a good opportunity for the Doug Watson-trained Ekhtiyaar, a winner over the course and distance in February last year.
Back after his summer break, he failed to act on dirt in the Garhoud Sprint, finishing a poor fifth behind Ibn Malik. Switching to turf, he’s fancied to give weight to his seven rivals in a race not many really appeal.
Best Bet: 1 Ekhtiyaar [Race 2] Best Value: 6 Thegreatcollection [Race 6]
Best Swinger: 4 Zakouski and 6 Freescape [Race 5]
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