Shaishee steps up in the dirt with Dane O’Neill at Meydan

Shaishee gave jockey Dane O’Neill the first of back-to-back wins in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National

DUBAI // Shaishee landed the featured 1,600 metres conditions race at Meydan yesterday, following up his win over 1,400m four weeks earlier.Sheikh Hamdan owns the winner, trained by Musabah Al Muhairi and ridden by the owner’s retained jockey, Dane O’Neill.

Sitting just off the early speed, O’Neill kicked with 800m left and they always looked likely to hold the late challenge of the same owner’s Marching Time.

“This horse just loves these dirt surfaces and seems to just keep improving,” O’Neill said. “That was his first win over the trip and he may have to go up in class.”

Owner and jockey wasted no time in completing a double, with the facile victory of The Taj in a 1,600m handicap. The runner-up over the same course and distance on his seasonal debut a month earlier, he hit the front 600m out and was far too good for his rivals.

“We were very pleased with his run last time and that was impressive,” O’Neill said. “Hopefully, he is a Carnival horse, and with few miles on the clock, is a nice prospect.”

He is trained by Doug Watson, himself completing a double after the 1,950m maiden was turned into a rout by One Man Band, ridden to an easy victory by Pat Dobbs for his main employer, Watson.

The pair tracked early leader Lake Hawk before quickening clear 400m out.

“He ran well first time for us when we thought he would and has relished the extra distance here,” Dobbs said. “The wide draw was a worry, but I was able to get near the leaders early, which was ideal.”

Dobbs completed his own double, and a treble for the trainer, when Henry Clay denied Tahaamah in a thrilling finish to a 2,000m handicap.

The jockey went straight to the front on the eventual winner, only to be headed with 200m left by Tahaamah, who beat him over course and distance two weeks ago. Dobbs’s mount would not be denied, though, and led again while closing for home.

The meeting opened with the prep race for the 1,600m Mazrat Al Ruwayah, the only Purebred Arabian race on the card. As it was last year, when contested on the Tapeta surface, it was won by the Eric Lemartinel-trained Bigg N Rich, driven to the lead 300m out by Wayne Smith. The horse held off the challenge of Shateh, ridden by Silvestre De Sousa.

“I rode this horse at Al Ain two weeks ago when he travelled well, but probably just tired,” Smith said. “I was keen to be positive on him and he is a nice horse in this grade.”

The finale, an ultra competitive 1,600m handicap, went to Filfil, trained by Satish Seemar and ridden by Tadhg O’Shea.

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