Rarely, if ever, does Saeed bin Suroor talk of his emotions, but after Prince Bishop handed the Godolphin trainer his 10th victory in Super Saturday's concluding round of the Al Maktoum Challenge at Meydan Racecourse, the master of Al Quoz was admittedly overwhelmed at the success.
Rightly so. Bin Suroor backed up last year's four victories on the second-biggest night in UAE racing, with Prince Bishop adding to the wins of Shuruq in the Burj Nahaar and Excellent Result in the Dubai City Of Gold. It was a spectacular training performance that all but sealed the Dubai World Cup Carnival trainers' title from his chief rival, Mike de Kock.
Before Saturday’s card, Prince Bishop was regarded as a World Cup also-ran, as his previous runs in the world’s most-valuable contest dictated. He was 10th in 2011, behind Victoire Pisa, but improved to seventh a year later behind Monterosso. Switched to turf last year, he trailed in 10th of 11 in the Dubai Sheema Classic.
Everybody loves an underdog, even when it is trained by the most successful handler in UAE history, but it would be a desperately poor Dubai World Cup if Prince Bishop were to prevail in three weeks.
Bin Suroor may well be a master at using the final round of the Al Maktoum Challenge as a springboard to World Cup glory, but it is a stretch to believe there will not be a horse more capable in the hunt for the US$10 million (Dh36.7m) in prize money.
Bin Suroor saddled Dubai Millennium, Street Cry and Electrocutionist to win both races, but more recently, Jalil finished over 15 lengths adrift of Curlin when it mattered at Nad Al Sheba in 2008 and Hunter’s Light was simply not good enough 12 months ago.
The key to Prince Bishop is clearly the relationship he has built up with jockey Keiren Fallon, who has been up for the horse’s past three victories. Fallon was a master of his craft on Saturday. From his draw in Gate 1, he skimmed the rail the whole way around. According to the Trakus data, Fallon’s economy saved Prince Bishop 22 metres, which equates to nine lengths. It brings sharply into focus what Sanshaawes and Surfer achieved in running second and third from the widest two draws of all, and that both should also receive an invitation to try their luck at the most lucrative prize in racing.
Fallon was also at his absolute best on Excellent Result, when he denied his partner’s stablemate, Songcraft, by a neck in the Dubai City Of Gold, a feeder for the Dubai Sheema Classic. Although Excellent Result is clearly improving, no winner of the Group 2 contest has gone on to win the Sheema Classic, which is a statistic that does not look under threat with the likes of the 2012 winner Cirrus Des Aigles and English Derby champion Ruler Of The World possibles for the $5m event.
While Bin Suroor was fortunate to win the Al Maktoum Challenge, he may well have gotten his evening off to the perfect start had Mickael Barzalona on Emirates Flyer not been outridden by Richard Hughes on Asmar in the Al Bastikiya.
The early stages of the race were run at a desperately slow pace, which resulted in Hughes making a game-changing manoeuvre early on by driving Asmar to the front to dictate his own sensible pace.
Barzalona realised what was happening before most of the other riders and also moved Emirates Flyer forward, but he had to negotiate a wide trip and covered 11 metres more than his conqueror, who is better bred to stay the 1,900-metre distance.
Barzalona was seen to much better effect later on aboard Shuruq, who he produced fast and late to collar Variety Club. The Frenchman anchored his mount on the inner, and having saved ground, Shuruq had enough in the tank to run down the two-time South African horse of the year.
The winner of the Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 looks tailor-made for the Godolphin Mile, in which she will prove a solid rival to last season’s winner, Soft Falling Rain, who was ninth in the Mahab Al Shimaal to Rich Tapestry.
Olivier Doleuze gave Rich Tapestry a wonderful ride, and no horse covered less ground during the 1,200m contest on Tapeta.
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