NEWMARKET // It was impossible to escape the reach of Dubai here on Friday, everywhere except the track itself.
There were food stalls of samples flown straight in from the Emirates, every race was sponsored by Dubai and the racecard was studded with advertisements showcasing the best of the UAE.
Where it mattered most, however, Godolphin were left wanting, especially in the featured Group 1 Fillies’ Mile in which the Aidan O’Brien juggernaut kept on rolling.
On Sunday, the Irish trainer had saddled the first three home in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and his latest raid from his Ballydoyle base saw Rhododendron outpoint her stablemate Hydrangea in the 1,600-metre contest.
There was a huge gap of six lengths back to Saeed Manana’s Urban Fox, with Godolphin’s Sobetsu, who was considered a strong favourite having thumped a field of maidens last month, only fifth behind Qatar Racing’s Rich Legacy.
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O’Brien took his worldwide tally of Group 1 wins to 20 – or 19 if you discount a win over hurdles at the Cheltenham Festival in March. With pretty much only the international season to go, O’Brien’s pursuit of the late Bobby Frankel’s record of 25 victories could go down to the wire.
Much like at Chantilly on Sunday, O’Brien deflected any praise as if his Coolmore blue raincoat was a veil of modesty.
What is an indisputable fact, however, is that he is the head of the racing operation in County Tipperary and his horses could not be in better form at the end of a long season.
Whatever O’Brien feels in private, in public he underlined that the record is not a concern of his.
“It’s not on my mind, I promise,” he said. “I don’t even think about it. We always do the right thing by the horse.
“It is so hard to win any race. It is so competitive out there. It is a lot of hard work by a lot of people. There are so many people I should mention, that I don’t, a lot of people who work unselfishly every day. They put in everything.”
Although the European turf swing effectively draws to a close after British Champions Day at Ascot next Saturday, there are plenty of chances for O’Brien to make up the difference.
While he did not seem overly keen to race either of the first two home at the Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita next month where his son, Joseph, has the favourite for the Juvenile Fillies’ Turf in Intricately, he will have a strong team ready for the trip to California.
Sir Isaac Newton and Bondi Beach are already ensconced in Australia for a campaign there, and Hong Kong in December could well provide the stage for the denouement.
The gap could well be only four winners by Saturday evening.
Churchill is an overwhelming favourite for the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes up against Godolphin’s Blue Point, from the Charlie Appleby stable and Thunder Snow, who hails from across this racing town from Saeed bin Suroor’s base.
O’Brien has won the 1,400-metre contest four times and Kevin Buckley, UK representative of Coolmore, could not hide his enthusiasm for O’Brien’s chances of chalking up a fifth win.
“Churchill’s work at home has been very good,” he said. “There is no such thing as a certainty but we are very much looking forward to it.”
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