Ibra Attack scooped the featured The Union 51 Cup in the seven-race Jebel Ali card to complete back-to-back victories on Saturday.
Trained by Ahmed Al Shemaili and ridden by Adrie de Vries, the Dialed In colt won a thriller with the lead changing on numerous occasions throughout the second half of the 1,200-metre race.
De Vries grabbed the initiative on the final run and just held off the late challenges of Bochart and Miller’s House with a head and three quarter lengths separating the first three at the finishing line.
De Vries was also the saddle two weeks ago when the colt won a maiden, on just his third start, over the track and trip.
“That was a good performance for a young horse who is learning and improving all the time. Hopefully there is more to come from him,” the winning jockey said.
Equally valuable, the concluding 1,950m handicap attracted a field of just five but only one ever really mattered, Tadhg O’Shea sending Rakeez straight to the front and the pair never seeing another rival, repeating their course and distance victory of a month ago for the UAE champion trainer Bhupat Seemar.
Royston Ffrench found a very willing partner in the shape of Onda Ruggente, the pair probably never headed in a 1,200m maiden for three year olds, the Blame gelding making it third time lucky, all at Jebel Ali this season, for Salem bin Ghadayer.
Horse and jockey were only caught close home a two weeks ago in a similar race over 1,400m by the aforementioned Ibra Attack who had highlighted the merit of the form in no uncertain terms just 30 minutes earlier.
Bin Ghadayer was celebrating a double after Xavier Ziani adopted similarly positive tactics as he made every post a winning one aboard Tolmount in a 1,600m handicap.
