Royal Ascot, England // Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid's Mukhadram faces a stiff challenge when he lines up against Treve during the Prince Of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot on Wednesday afternoon.
Mukhadram defied convention on behalf of trainer William Haggas when he finished second in the Dubai World Cup at Meydan Racecourse on his first run on Tapeta in March.
Mukhadram, the choice of jockey Paul Hanagan, is joined in the 2,000-metre event by Elkaayed, also owned by the Minister of Finance, and trained by Roger Varian.
Mukhadram was second to Al Kazeem in the Prince Of Wales's Stakes 12 months ago, and Angus Gold said his charge deserves another shot.
“He only just got beaten by the best older mile-and-a-quarter horse around, and we think he should have another go,” said Gold, Sheikh Hamdan’s racing manager.
“If Treve is back to her best, it will probably be an impossible task, but we are not going to know until we get there.”
Treve won the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in Paris in October but was beaten on her seasonal debut by Cirrus Des Aigles.
With Ascot bathed in sun for much of yesterday, Treve will race on good-to-firm going for the first time in her career, but jockey Frankie Dettori was unconcerned after his victory aboard The Wow Signal in the Coventry Stakes.
“[Treve] won the Prix de Diane on similar ground last year and beat the track record by two seconds. The ground is not an issue,” Dettori said.
sports@thenational.ae
Follow us on Twitter at @SprtNationalUAE
