HARD to believe that last Friday evening’s meeting of the 2022 Dubai World Cup Carnival was the sixth, and the programme’s highlight was the five-furlong Group 2 Blue Point Sprint on the turf.

It was won in great style by Godolphin’s Lazuli, ridden with confidence by William Buick for Charlie Appleby. This was the first time the race carried the name of Godolphin’s crack sprinter who won the equivalent race, the Meydan Sprint in 2019, for the same trio of connections. Blue Point is now at stud in Kildangan and his first crop are yearlings.

Lazuli is a homebred five-year-old gelding by Dubawi and Buick eased him into contention shortly after halfway, striking the front entering the final furlong and a half. Runner-up to his stablemate, Man Of Promise, in the furlong-longer Listed Dubai Sprint on his seasonal return three weeks ago, Appleby’s speedster was registering a sixth career success, and his biggest victory to date, having previously won twice in Group 3 company in Britain.

Buick said: “He has a Group 2 on his CV now and this five furlongs is his optimum, although he has won over six. He is a bigger horse this year and looks like a proper sprinter now.

“He was entitled to win that as he was the best horse in the race, and he proved that. I am not sure what the plan is; we could go back to six furlongs, but will sit down and talk about it.”

Procession

The Group 3 Nad Al Sheba Trophy, over 14 furlongs on turf, was turned into a procession by Manobo, completing doubles for Appleby and Buick, as well as a treble for Godolphin. Having led for the first furlong, Buick was happy to let Taqareer take over at the head of affairs, with Manobo leading the main pack behind that clear leader.

Homebred by Godolphin, the four-year-old gelded son of Sea The Stars ambled into contention in the straight before Buick committed for home with nearly three furlongs to race, and the race was effectively in the bag. Victory took his unbeaten run to five, having only made his debut in the middle of May last year. Already a Group 2 winner of the Prix Chaudenay, he is an exciting prospect for the season.

After the race Appleby said: “We were very hopeful coming here tonight, especially receiving weight from most of his rivals, and his class has shone through. He is a big horse and versatile, because he has the speed for a mile and a half and the stamina for two miles. We will probably aim at the Dubai Gold Cup, but the Sheema Classic is another option. We will see how his preparation and our other big race contenders go between now and World Cup night.”

Valiant win

The concluding mile turf handicap attracted a capacity field of 16, and all but the winner might as well have stayed at home. Godolphin’s Valiant Prince stormed clear two furlongs out, with Buick in the saddle again for Appleby. The winner is a four-year-old son of Dubawi out of the Group 1 Matron Stakes winner Chachamaidee and was a 200,000gns yearling purchase.

The second and final fillies’ classic of the campaign, the nine and a half furlong Group 3 UAE Oaks on dirt, was contested by seven three-year-olds, and it went the same way as the UAE 1000 Guineas, Shahama producing the goods for Fawzi Nass and KHK Racing, despite missing the break under the unflappable Adrie de Vries.

The Dutchman was happy to settle in last during the early stages before the daughter of Munning started to make ground on the far side of the track, edging closer before cruising into contention turning for home. She hit the front inside the two-furlong marker and had the race in safekeeping. Shahama is now unbeaten after four starts.

De Vries said: “The big screen distracted her at the start and then she was not enjoying the kickback, but she is a jockey’s dream because she has so much class. You would hope there was more in the tank.”

Maiden tag

A six-furlong conditions race on turf for three-year-olds, the Al Wasl Stakes, was dominated by Godolphin who supplied the first three home.

Pat Cosgrave produced Wild Place, a Tally-Ho Stud bred daughter of Mehmas, to lose her maiden tag at the third attempt, leading in the closing stages to win for Saeed bin Suroor.

Silent Speech, representing Appleby and Buick, appeared the likely winner when cruising to the front entering the final the final furlong and a half, before Cosgrave threw down the decisive challenge. The winner’s stable companion, Home City, was third to complete the Godolphin 1-2-3.

The same trio had filled the first three places in a similar contest a month ago, won then by Silent Speech from Home City and Wild Place.

Cosgrave said of the winner: “She can be a bit tricky as she showed in the preliminaries, and then she was a bit slowly away, but she really travelled nicely and, if anything, I probably hit the front a bit too soon. She will stay further, definitely seven furlongs and maybe even a mile in time.”

O’Shea wins

The opening seven-furlong dirt handicap was won easily by Imperial Empire, always in the first two under Tadhg O’Shea who was sporting the silks of Al Rashid Stables for trainer Bhupat Seemar. The pair went clear early in the straight, after which they were never in danger of being caught. The winner, a five-year-old Dubawi gelding, he has now won five times.

O’Shea said: “That was his sixth run this season and we will have to see what the handicapper does. Ideally I would like to go straight to the Godolphin Mile but we might have to run on Super Saturday.”

Meydan double for Seemar

TWO days after the Carnival meeting, racing was back at Meydan on Sunday. The feature mile conditions race over a mile on dirt saw Royal Mews and Tadhg O’Shea prove far too good and they completed an early double on the card for Bhupat Seemar.

In a field of seven, O’Shea settled his mount, a five-year-old gelded son of Siyouni racing in the silks of Deva Racing, in midfield. Once asked for his effort at the top of the straight, the outcome was soon beyond doubt. This was only a sixth career start and second victory for the winner who was successful on the Chelmsford all-weather when trained by John and Thady Gosden for Godolphin.

Seemar had enjoyed a one-two in the preceding six-furlong turf maiden, O’Shea’s mount Lake Causeway being denied by Al Rashid Stables’ local debutant Bosphorus, the mount of Dane O’Neill.

A four-year-old Golden Horn colt, Bosphorus was getting off the mark at the sixth attempt and on what was his turf debut. He was runner-up twice in Britain for Godolphin and John Gosden, both at Wolverhampton.

Seemar said: “He has been slow to come to hand which is why you have not seen him and he has been off for almost a year. His coat is still not 100%, so he should improve from that.”

Convincing

A 10-furlong handicap was won convincingly by Al Madhar for trainer Musabbeh Al Mheiri and owner Tawfik A Saeid Ali. Twice successful in Britain for Richard Hannon and the late Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Siyouni five-year-old gelding recorded a first UAE success on his penultimate start over the same track and trip.

Antonio Fresu, the winning rider, said: “He has won twice this year but this is going to be a very nice horse next season.”

The concluding seven-furlong turf handicap produced a thrilling finish, with the first five home finishing within a length of each another. Al Salt held on under Dane O’Neill for Shadwell and Erwan Charpy. Runner-up on both his recent starts on turf at Meydan, the homebred five-year-old gelding by Muhaarar twice won on all-weather surfaces in Britain for William Haggas.

Straightforward

A nine and a half-furlong turf handicap proved a fairly straightforward assignment for Ursa Major under Ray Dawson, riding for Ahmad Bin Harmash in the colours of the trainer’s son Hamdan. He was another winner on the card previously in the care of John Gosden for Godolphin.

Dawson said: “He has been learning with more racing and he settled really nicely today. Hopefully he is improving.” The rider then had to settle for second in the following rated conditions stakes over 11 furlongs on dirt, caught close home by Omani apprentice Saif Al Balushi aboard stable companion Woodditton as Bin Harmash provided the one-two, the winner owned by Abdullah Menahi. A seven-year-old Dark Angel gelding, Woodditton was winning for the first time since his successful debut.