Cirrus Des Aigles and Rulership underlined the strength of the past two Dubai Sheema Classics on Sunday with Group 1 victories on opposite sides of the world.
In France, Cirrus Des Aigles stamped his authority on a small but select field in the Prix Ganay with a crushing eight-length success.
Rulership beat a high-class international line-up in the Audemars Piguet QEII Cup in Hong Kong.
Cirrus Des Aigles took to the turf at Longchamp Racecourse after his gutsy victory in Dubai last month. Olivier Peslier, his jockey, immediately grabbed the lead and was three lengths clear as the pair cruised into the straight. From there it was simply a matter of the Frenchman steering his mount home to win from Giofra and Reliable Man, both trained by Alain de Royer-Dupre.
Cirrus Des Aigles, trained by Corine Barande-Barbe, is entered in the Singapore Airlines International Cup at Kranji Racecourse next month and the Coronation Cup at Epsom in England in June.
Rulership, trained by Katsihiko Sumii, finished sixth behind Rewilding in last season's Sheema Classic. The Japanese raider was ridden by Umberto Rispoli, the 23-year-old Italian who is to take up a position in France with Mike Delzangles, Sheikh Fahad Al Thani's trainer. Rispoli took the lead with 400 metres left to race with Treasure Beach, who was fourth behind Cirrus Des Aigles at Meydan Racecourse, backtracking to finish ninth.
In Singapore, Rocket Man got back on the winning trail after his second to Krypton Factor in the Dubai Golden Shaheen with a fluid success in the Lion City Cup at Kranji. It was the fourth successive victory in the Group 1 contest for Patrick Shaw's gelding, who beat Michael Freedman's Better Be The One, the ninth horse home in the Al Quoz sprint won by Ortensia.
Felix Coetzee, who rode Rocket Man in Dubai, was once again in the saddle and the South African rider positioned his mount from stall one on the rail out in front, a position the pair never relinquished. After 600m Rocket Man was four lengths clear of Mr Big, trained by Freedman, and Ato, Shaw's other runner, and sauntered home by four lengths.
Although Shaw suggested last season that his stable star was better than Black Caviar, the South African neglected last week to enter his gelding in this summer's Diamond Jubilee at Royal Ascot, the prime target for the Australian mare.
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