GOODWOOD, ENGLAND // Chris Hayes is adamant that Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid’s Irish 2,000 Guineas winner Awtaad takes his chance in Wednesday’s Sussex Stakes as a better horse than the one beaten at Royal Ascot last month.
Awtaad suffered his first defeat since October when third to Wednesday’s rivals Galileo Gold and The Gurkha, the English and French 2,000 Guineas winners, in the St James Palace Stakes.
Awtaad, a son of fast ground sire Cape Cross, has not raced on ground faster than good during his six-race career, but Hayes hopes that the good to firm ground here will see his mount in a better light.
“I have ridden him a lot since Ascot and to me he has improved,” said the jockey. “People have said to me that he doesn’t look like he wants good ground, but he doesn’t ride like he wants it soft. I have said it every time since his Tetrarch win in May that as soon as he gets good ground he’ll be better.
“I want nice, good ground with no excuses for anybody. If it is the quicker side of good, then fine. If he is not good enough, then that’s fine, too.”
It has been a career-defining season for Hayes, who won the UAE 2,000 Guineas and Al Bastikiya on Market Rally at Meydan in the winter before he guided Awtaad to victory over Galileo Gold on yielding ground in the Irish Classic in May.
Hayes has never ridden at Goodwood, a notoriously tricky track, but does not foresee any issues ahead of the 1,600-metre Group 1.
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“It won’t make a difference. He is a very balanced horse; he is a very easy ride,” he said.
“I’ll speak to the senior Irish riders such as Mick Kinane and some of the guys who are riding now, but when you are riding a horse like Awtaad the track doesn’t matter.
“I thought I had a great season in Dubai, and the ball kept rolling, but of late it has been a bit frustrating but I am expecting a rattling August, September and October.”
Awtaad will have to be in the form of his life if he is to deprive Hugo Palmer’s Galileo Gold, who has also strengthened up since Ascot. The Gurkha, trained by Aidan O’Brien, is also reported to be in fine fettle.
Godolphin run three in the £1 million (Dh4.8m) race, with Toomore, Ribchester and Richard Pankhurst all set to take their chance, and the Dubai-based stable showed it was in good form yesterday when Dutch Connection beat Palmer’s Home Of The Brave and Gifted Master in the Group 2 Lennox Stakes.
Dutch Connection, ridden with aplomb by James McDonald, beat Home Of The Brave, also owned by Godolphin, by just under two lengths. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, was present.
Earlier in the day the Arabian Racing Organisation announced that the President Of The UAE Cup will renew its association with the UK Arabian Derby, which will now be run at Doncaster on September 8.
The Abu Dhabi Sports Council has boosted the prize fund to the Group 1 race to £100,000.
The President Of The UAE Cup was established by the late Sheikh Zayed to promote and celebrate the Arabian horse worldwide and its significant place in UAE culture.
“We are delighted to bring the President of the UAE Cup series back to Britain, giving the UK Arabian Derby the prominence it deserves,” Faisal Al Rahmani, General Secretary for the President of the UAE Cup programme, said.
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