Deauville, France // Sunday was dominated by the Middle East. Abu Dhabi were the sponsors, and Dubai and Qatar shared the spoils.
Godolphin struck in the Group 1 Prix Saint-Alary with Charlie Appleby’s Sobetsu, who could take up her engagement in the English Oaks at Epsom in three weeks.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid’s Muraaqib did the least he could do but still managed to win the President Of The UAE Cup after a layoff of 294 days.
Then there was Al Shaqab’s Brametot, who proved a welcome balm for French trainer Jean-Claude Rouget in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains after a virus tore through his stables earlier this season to leave two of his horses dead.
Such was the interest trained on this fixture that moments after William Buick had guided Sobetsu to a three-length victory over fellow outsider Vue Fantastique, Appleby received a phone call from Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President of the UAE and ruler of Dubai.
“His Highness was straight on the phone as she crossed the line, and it’s great that he was watching,” the trainer said.
Sobetsu was largely overlooked in the build-up to the 2000-metre contest because she was beaten out of sight by Aidan O’Brien’s Rhododendron in the Fillies’ Mile in October as a juvenile.
She wintered in Dubai, and returned to take the step up in distance in her stride. If there is any chance of rain on June 2, the daughter of Dubawi would have a fair chance at glory at Epsom.
“I thought she was guaranteed to stay the trip,” Appleby said. “When she gets in to a nice rhythm, I’d be confident she would get a mile-and-a-half, but the key thing is the ground. If the ground came up for her then for sure, we’d have to go.
“She’s won that comfortably so backing up would not be a concern for me at all and she has the balance for Epsom.”
Where Sobetsu beat her rivals with ease, both Muraaqib and Brametot were involved in tight finishes.
Muraaqib had not raced since he showed a tremendous turn of foot to win the Dubai International Stakes in July. Francois Xavier Betras gave the five year old a tender ride, and even when Mehdaaf Athbah put down a sustained challenge under Pierre-Charles Boudot Muraaqib just kept finding more.
Al Mourtajez has bestrode Purebred Arabian racing like a colossus in Europe for the past two seasons but winning trainer Francois Rohaut believes now is the time for the heavyweight bout everybody wants.
“You will never see this horse winning by 10 lengths,” Rohaut said. “When he hits the front he says, ‘OK, the job is done’. He is not like Al Mourtajez.
“I think it is time to have a go against Al Mourtajez. I don’t know his programme, and I do not know our programme. Sheikh Hamdan will decide.”
Of the three Group 1 winners on the card, however, Brametot is the one who could emerge to be the best of all.
His victory over Le Brivido by a head belied how easily he did it under Cristian Demuro. Last season, Rouget sent out Almanzor to win both the Poulains and the French Derby, and Brametot could easily follow the same path.
“It has been difficult for me, but the horses are ready to run for the summer now,” he said.
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