Maximum Security in Saudi Arabia | Saudi Cup

Maximum Security (New Year’s Day) overtook Mucho Gusto (Mucho Macho Man) inside the final furlong and held off a late charge from Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute) to take the inaugural running of the $20-million Saudi Cup, the world’s richest race. Stalking the pace set by Mucho Gusto while racing wide down the backstretch, Maximum Security was put to a drive by Luis Saez midway around the turn. Mucho Gusto hung tough in the lane but eventually succumbed to Maximum Security approaching the 100 metre mark while Midnight Bisou roared down the rail. Maximum Security hit the line three-quarters of a length to the better of the mare, with Benbatl (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) nabbing Mucho Gusto late to be third.

Call The Wind and Olivier Peslier | racingfotos.com

The international favourites may have been humbled by locally trained runners in the first two turf contests on the $29-million Saudi Cup card at King Abdulaziz Racecourse in Riyadh on Saturday, but European-trained runners powered back to fill the trifecta in the featured grass race, the $2.5-million Longines Turf Cup, with George Strawbridge’s French-trained homebred Call The Wind (GB) (Frankel {GB}) leading home the British-based Mekong (GB) (Frankel {GB}) and Prince of Arran (GB) (Shirocco {Ger}) in the 3000 metre contest.

Call The Wind’s trainer Freddy Head had earlier in the week lamented the Group 1 penalty that his 6-year-old gelding had had to haul around all of last year, when he was placed in an agonizing five group races, and indeed Call The Wind on Saturday was carrying less than top weight for the first time since winning the G1 Prix Royal-Oak in 2018. Not that he got off easy; his 133 pounds in Saudi was second only to the 136 lugged around by Cross Counter (GB) (Teofilo {Ire}) and Dee Ex Bee (GB) (Farhh {GB}). But Call The Wind nonetheless capitalized, diving through a seam when it opened at the top of the stretch and pulling clear inside the final furlong to win comfortably.

Call The Wind was permitted by Olivier Peslier to drop about six lengths off the pace set by Dee Ex Bee in first-time blinkers heading into the first of three bends with Dramatic Device (GB) (Dansili {GB}) keeping Dee Ex Bee honest on his outside. The heavy favourite and G1 Melbourne Cup winner Cross Counter sat about two lengths off the pace with Prince of Arran about the same margin further back, traveling just the better of Call The Wind.

Dee Ex Bee found himself suddenly alone on the lead as Dramatic Device bore out badly around the second bend and exited the race, but the 2018 G1 Investec Derby runner-up soon found himself in trouble of his own, coming under the whip with 800 metres still to run. The locally trained Contango (Ire) (Casamento {Ire}) took over the lead midway around the bend with Cross Counter looming large on his outside, while Call The Wind and Peslier all the while waited patiently for running room on the inside. That seam was granted at the top of the lane and the pair split runners, grabbing the lead at the furlong pole as Mekong and Prince of Arran rallied down the middle of the track while Cross Counter threw in the towel. The winning margin was 2 1/2 lengths on the line from Mekong, who had been fourth in a Meydan handicap last out on Jan. 30, with the same deficit back to Prince of Arran, who was making his first start since an unplaced finish in the G1 Hong Kong Vase in December.

“Call The Wind showed how good he is there,” said Head. “He was able to quicken on that ground, which I wasn’t sure about. We had a lovely run, but I know that horse is not an easy horse to ride as he goes in snatches in the race. He goes well, then he has nothing and he can be a bit of a lazy sort but Olivier gave him a great, great ride. He stays and has a lot of stamina so Olivier chose to stay on the rail and do his race like that.

“It’s funny because this horse is six now but I think he has improved. In his mind he is a much better and nicer horse to train. He was very difficult to train early on and wouldn’t go into the stalls and that was why he didn’t run much at three. I think he’s still improving.”

Peslier added, “I’m very happy with the horse. He’s a Group 1 horse and you need a Group 1 horse to come to this race in Saudi Arabia, and if you are not Group 1 you cannot win.

“I’m very happy with the ground on the turf track. After three months when you see what the team has done here, they’ve worked very hard and done a fantastic job. I have ridden here for a very, very long time and at the other track and I see the construction here and it’s very good.”

Pedigree Notes

Even in the wildly successful program of breeder George Strawbridge, a mare like In Clover (GB) (Inchinor {GB}) is a rare gem. The winner of the 2005 G3 Prix de Flore for Strawbridge and Head, five of her first six foals are stakes winners, and three of those Group 1 winners. The sequence kicked off with her second foal, the dual listed winner Dream Clover (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), after which followed We Are (Ire) (Dansili {GB}), who was in fact stripped of her first Group 1 win in the Prix Saint-Alary due to elevated testosterone levels resulting from a tumor, only to gain redemption two starts later in the G1 Prix de l’Opera. The listed-winning Incahoots (GB) came the next year followed by Call The Wind, and With You (GB) (Dansili {GB}) added her name to the list with a win in the G1 Prix Rothschild in 2018. All five of the aforementioned were trained by Head, as was their dam. The second dam, the G3 Prix de Royaumont victress Bellarida (Fr) (Bellypha {GB}), was trained by Head’s sister Criquette for Wertheimer et Frere. The 18-year-old In Clover has an as-yet unraced 3-year-old colt by Dansili named Westward (GB), a 2-year-old colt by Dubawi (Ire) named In Crowd (GB) and a yearling son of Invincible Spirit (Ire).

LONGINES TURF H., $2,500,000, King Abdulaziz, 2-29, 4yo/up, 3000mT, .
1–CALL THE WIND (GB), 133, g, 6, Frankel (GB)–In Clover (GB) (GSW-Fr, $222,716), by Inchinor (GB). O/B-George Strawbridge; T-Freddie Head; J-Olivier Peslier; $1,500,000. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Fr, GSP-UAE, 15-4-4-4, $2,120,610. *1/2 to Dream Clover (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), MSW & GSP-Fr, $163,406; We Are (Ire) (Dansili {GB}), G1SW-Fr, $437,651; and With You (GB) (Dansili {GB}), G1SW-Fr, $640,753.
2–Mekong (GB), 128, g, 5, Frankel (GB)–Ship’s Biscuit (GB), by Tiger Hill (GB). (425,000gns RNA HIT ’19 TATAUT). O-Khalid bin Mishref; B-Philip Newton; T-Jamie Osborne. $500,000.
3–Prince of Arran (GB), 131, g, 7, Shirocco (Ger)–Storming Sioux (GB), by Storming Home (GB). O-Saeed bel Obaida; B-Rabbah Bloodstock Limited; T-Charlie Fellowes. $250,000.
Margins: 2HF, 2HF, 1 3/4.
Also Ran: Contango (Ire), Cross Counter (GB), True Self (Ire), Hibou (GB), Mafaaheem (Ire), Dramatic Device (GB), King’s Advice (GB), Called to the Bar (Ire), Twilight Payment (Ire), Dee Ex Bee, Downdraft (Ire).

Dark Power | Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia/Doug DeFelice

Bahrain isn’t the most notable nation on the international horse racing circuit, but it took a significant step in growing its profile on Saudi Cup day when winning the first two races on the card, with Dark Power (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) bringing up the double when running down Godolphin’s Mubtasim (Ire) (Arcano {Ire}) in the $1-million stc 1351 Cup. Mubtasim’s stablemate Glorious Journey (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) ran on late to be third, making it a clean sweep for horses trained in the Gulf region.

Bred by Guy O’Callaghan and sold as a foal for €80,000, Dark Power was campaigned by Alan Craddock with trainer Clive Cox and plied his trade in Britain’s handicap ranks until being bought by Richard Frisby for 42,000gns at the 2018 Tattersalls Autumn Horses-in-Training Sale. He transferred to Bahrain-based trainer Allan Smith thereafter and has won or hit the board in all seven starts since for Al Adiyat Racing.

Racing keenly in the three path and about 2 1/2 lengths off Mubtasim’s lead down the backstretch, Dark Power put in a sustained rally down the middle of the track under Frankie Dettori and at last reeled in Mubtasim just strides from the wire.

A jubilant Dettori said post-race, “[Owner] Sheikh Isa is a friend of mine. I’ve been going to Bahrain for the last five years and I took the ride a month ago. I didn’t know what to expect to be honest, but this is an amazing feeling. To win a race like this for your mates is a double-whammy. What they’ve done in the space of two months [with this turf course] is remarkable.”

Smith said, “Frankie gave him a super ride. The main thing was getting him settled early on and Frankie just got him slotted in and relaxed. I always thought he’d make a seven-furlong horse even when I bought him. We bought a sprinter, but he’s always done his best at the end of a race. I’ll take it.”

Mubtasim’s rider James Doyle, who had won a stake in Bahrain aboard Dark Power in December, said, “I know the winner well. I have won on him in Bahrain before.

“Frustrating, we had a dream run round. He stays the trip really well. I have no complaints. I’m delighted with him. I have been coming to Saudi Arabia quite a bit, I have seen the track develop and they have done a magnificent job with it.”

Pedigree Notes

Dark Power is out of the placed Desert Style (Ire) mare Sixfields Flyer (Ire), a half-sister to G3 July S. and G3 Tetrarch S. winner Rich Ground (GB) (Common Grounds {GB}). The dam has a 2-year-old filly by Gutaifan (Ire) to represent her.

STC 1351 TURF SPRINT, $1,000,000, King Abdulaziz, 2-29, 3yo/up, 1351mT, 1:19.63, gd.
1–DARK POWER (IRE), 126, g, 6, Dark Angel (Ire)–Sixfields Flyer (Ire), Desert Style (Ire). (€80,000 Ylg ’15 GOFORB; 50,000gns RNA HRA ’17 TATNOV; 42,000gns HIT ’18 TATAUT). O-Al Adiyat Racing; B-Mr Guy O’Callahan; T-Allan Smith; J-Frankie Dettori; $600,000. Lifetime Record: Ch. Sprinter-Bah, 21-10-3-2, $692,355.
2–Mubtasim (Ire), 126, g, 6, Arcano (Ire)–Start the Music (Ire), by King’s Best. (€22,000 Wlg ’14 GOFNOV; 38,000gns Ylg ’15 TATOCT; 140,000gns HRA ’18 TATAUT). O-Godolphin; B-Mrs Natasha Drennan; T-Charlie Appleby. $200,000.
3–Glorious Journey (GB), 126, g, 5, Dubawi (Ire)–Fallen For You (GB), by Dansili (GB). (2,600,000gns Ylg ’16 TATOCT). O-HH Shekiha Al Jalila Racing; B-Normandie Stud Ltd; T-Charlie Appleby. $100,000.
Margins: HD, 2, 3HF.
Also Ran: Speak In Colours (GB), Suedois, Legends of War, Momkin (Ire), Ghoul (Brz), Larchmont Lad, Royal Intervention (Ire), Sir Dancealot (Ire), Holy Day (Arg), King Malpic (Fr), Graignes (Fr).

Port Lions | Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia/Doug DeFelice

The former Irish handicapper Port Lions (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) has enjoyed a new lease on life since being purchased privately and expatriated to Bahrain last fall, and he ran his win streak to six with a last-gasp victory over the G1 Nassau S. winner and heavy favourite Dierdre (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}) in the 2100 metre Mohamed Yousuf Naghi Motors Cup, the opening race of the Saudi Cup Card on Saturday.

Port Lions has indeed been all over the map in his five years; a €220,000 yearling, he started out with trainer Mick Halford in Ireland in the Godolphin blue, and was sent off to Henri-Alex Pantall in France after breaking his maiden in his ninth start. He made just one start for Pantall before being bought by Madeleine Tylicki for 22,000gns from the Tattersalls Autumn Horses-in-Training Sale in 2018, and he was bought privately by a group of owners with Bahrain-based but globally successful trainer Fawzi Nass after winning twice in Ireland last spring and summer. Port Lions had won five races by a combined 28 lengths between Nov. 11 and Jan. 31, and held his form during the short trip over to Riyadh.

It appeared initially as if that win streak was doomed when Port Lions completely blew the break, but Adrie de Vries kept his cool and settled the bay at the tail of the field but within striking range as the favourites Deirdre and Mount Everest (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) stalked the pace set by For The Top (Arg) (Equal Stripes {Arg}). At the same time as Deirdre had to back up slightly to find daylight passing the quarter pole, Port Lions was beginning to pick off rivals just in behind. For The Top ran on gamely as Mount Everest folded and Deirdre chased down the middle of the track, and the mare put up a game fight when Port Lions appeared on her outside but Port Lions was simply going better. The pair ran down For The Top in the final lunges with Port Lions getting the wire a head sooner.

“It feels absolutely amazing to win the first turf race here in Saudi Arabia,” said Nass. “Of course, we came here with some hope but to actually accomplish that is amazing. He missed the break quite badly, which didn’t help but obviously we know he’s got a very nice turn of foot. I wasn’t sure if he could do that from so far back off a slow pace but obviously he managed. He has just improved and improved. He’s a proper fast ground horse and has done very well since he came to Bahrain.”

De Vries added, “This was fantastic. He has been full of confidence since Fawzi got him and he has improved every race. We came here a little bit underestimated I think but our only worry was the trip as it was the furthest he has ran. He missed the kick; I wanted to sit last but maybe not that far. He settled and he’s got a great kick.

“It’s just amazing for the connections. The track is beautiful. I can’t believe in such a short time they were able to make it; it was a dream to ride on. It feels amazing to win. I knew we would run well but I wasn’t sure if we could beat the Japanese filly. It is just a great feeling.”

Oisin Murphy, the pilot of Deirdre, added, “No excuses. She jumped well, she travelled good. Everything went well except we didn’t win. We got into the right position and on form we would have won easily. It happens, sometimes. The track was very nice and I think they did a great job.”

Pedigree Notes

Port Lions is out of the American stakes winner Cold Cold Woman (GB) (Machiavellian), a half-sister to the dam of G2 Summer Mile winner Aljamaaheer (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). Appearing deeper in the pedigree under the third dam is Solo de Lune (Ire) (Law Society), whose legacy includes the G1 Irish Oaks winner Moonstone (GB) (Dalakhani {Ire}), now the dam of five stakes winners, and G1 Prix Saint-Alary winner Cerulean Sky (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}), who has produced the G2 Doncaster Cup victor Honolulu (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}).

MOHAMED YOUSUF NAGHI MOTORS TURF CUP, $1,000,000, King Abdulaziz, 2-29, 4yo/up, 2100mT, 2:11.41, gd.
1–PORT LIONS (IRE), 126, g, 5, Kodiac (GB)–Cold Cold Woman (GB) (SW-US, $116,436), by Machiavellian. (€220,000 Ylg ’16 GOFORB; 22,000gns HRA ’18 TATAUT). O-Victorious Racing; B-Diomed Bloodstock Ltd; T-Fawzi Nass; J-Adrie de Vries; $600,000. Lifetime Record: 21-8-6-3, $706,559.
2–Deirdre (Jpn), 121, m, 6, Harbinger (GB)–Reizend (Jpn), by Special Week (Jpn). (¥21,000,000 Ylg ’15 JRHAJUL). O-Toji Morita; B-Northern Farm; T-Mitsuro Hashida. $200,000.
3–For The Top (Arg), 126, h, 5, Equal Stripes (Arg)–Felicitas One (Arg), by Bernstein. O-Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid al Nuaimi; B-El Turf; T-Salem bin Ghadayer. $100,000.
Margins: SHD, HF, 2 1/4.
Also Ran: Intellogent (Ire), Royal Youmzain (Fr), Mount Everest (Ire), Trais Fluors (GB), Imagen de Roma (Arg). Scratched: Persian Moon (Ire).

by TDN