Magic Lily set to bloom in Cape Verdi at Meydan
dubai — The Group 2 $250,000 Cape Verdi scehduled at the Meydan on Thursday night, features some intriguing faces, but none arguably as much as Charlie Appleby-trained Magic Lily, whose blood is as blue as the Godolphin silks rider James Doyle will adorn.
A daughter of five-time G1-winning champion New Approach and English and German Oaks winner Dancing Rain, she began her career as promising as her pedigree — smashing foes by eight lengths on debut in Sept. 2017 and finishing a game three-quarter-length third in the Fillies’ Mile (G1) astern Laurens and ahead of Magical — but luck soon went lopsided, according to a press release.
“She sustained an injury there in early part of her 3-year-old career and that’s why she missed (2018),” Appleby said. “We were very happy to get her back on track for her reappearance in France, where she put up a respectable effort there. I was a bit disappointed, but we sort of potentially knew our fate there in her last start because she was drawn wide at Lingfield.
“She didn’t do it the right way around, therefore we knew it was always the plan to come here.”
Off 721 days between her 2- and 4-year-old seasons, the chestnut filly
We were very happy to get her (Magic Lily) back on track for her reappearance in France, where she put up a respectable effort there Charlie Appleby
Trainer
returned with a good second in SaintCloud’s Prix Dahlia (Listed) on Oct. 4 over 2,000m—her first try beyond the mile of her first two runs. She came back six weeks later to disappoint on Lingfield’s all-weather in the aforementioned Gillies Fillies’ Stakes (Listed), checking in sixth after turning for home with the lead.
Jason Watson was aboard that day, but Doyle returns to partner for the first time since piloting her debut victory. The pair breaks from post three of eight fillies and mares in what will be just her fifth lifetime start. Arguably her toughest challenge could come from Apple by conditioned Beyond Reason, a G2 winner with more of a penchant for shorter distances than Magic Lily.
“The (1,600m) trip will be on the sharp side for her on Thursday, but it’s hopefully a nice prep for her into the (1,800m) Balanchine,” Appleby concluded.
“Her preparation has gone well, so we’re looking forward to seeing her next start on a nice conventional track like Meydan. She’s in good order and should put up a decent performance.”
Trainer Mick Halford is back for the Dubai World Cup Carnival and the 2014 Dubai Gold Cup-winning conditioner gets his local winter campaign going with a pair of key contenders in the two black-type affairs on Thursday at Meydan Racecourse.
While both Simsir and Surrounding figure to make some noise in the $175,000 Zabeel Turf (Listed) and $250,000 Cape Verdi (G2), respectively, they approach their Dubai tests in vastly different ways.
The Aga Khan’s Simsir has raced just three times, all last year as a sophomore, and has yet to give a poor showing in his native Ireland.
His two victories came at the same 2,000m he will contest on Thursday — one over turf and one over all-weather — and he enters in form, finishing second four weeks ago at Dundalk, again over 2,000m. The son of Zoffany enters a competitive inaugural running of the Zabeel Turf, which is led by G1 winner Dream Castle and G2 winner Loxley.