THE fastest timefigure on the flat in Ireland and Britain in the period under review came from an unexpected source. Of the hundreds of five-furlong races at Dundalk since the track opened nearly a decade ago, very few have managed to break 58.0s, and none has been faster than the 57.08s recorded by Primo Uomo in Friday week’s opener.

There have been quite a few good horses who have tried, and the previous record was held by the very fast Caspian Prince from a spell when he was not far behind the best sprinters around. This was also against a backdrop of the Dundalk surface having been slower than usual of late, which is what it also appeared to be later on Friday’s card.

Primo Uomo has not suddenly become champion sprinter material, especially as he won this handicap by normal margins. It is reasonable to think that the wind (of 15 knots according to official sources) played its part. But, even so, a timefigure of 104 can be viewed as conservative, remembering that flat timefigures are approximately 35 lower than jumps ones.

That bettered figures of 100 achieved by the Lingfield winners Encore D’Or and Second Thought the following day, though the latter managed that – and to run down the useful Sutter County – with a notably quick final two furlongs of about 21.3s which strongly suggests he can make his mark in company even more elevated than this listed one.

MEYDAN

Things are coming nicely to the boil out in Meydan with the Dubai World Cup on March 25th in mind. Postponed can be forgiven his defeat by Prize Money in a Group 2 there on Saturday in what was a messy race, with the winner worth just a 109 timefigure.

The test of speed suited Decorated Knight in the Jebel Hatta – as it had done in the Winter Derby Trial at Lingfield the time before – as he swooped to score with a mere 95 timefigure but with a fast closing sectional.

The best timefigure of all at Meydan, however, came from Jungle Cat, who posted a 123 in beating Baccarat in the Nad Al Sheba Turf Sprint. Significant in itself, it is even more so when one considers that Jungle Cat had been beaten easily by Ertijaal (132 timefigure) in a course record the time before. Ertijaal could just about be the best sprinter in the world at present.