Five Gr1 winners feature in Friday’s running of the £500,000 Bahrain International Trophy.
The second running of a race that’s been warmly welcomed onto the International stage sees a significant rise in quality, with five Group 1 winners headed by Japan’s globetrotting mare DEIRDRE on what will be her career swan song under Hollie Doyle.
Deirdre – Oisin Murphy beats Mehdaayih -Frankie Dettori in the 2019 Gr1 Qatar Nassau Stakes
©mark Cranhamphoto.com
Ballydoyle enters the fray with its first runner in the Kingdom by supplementing last year’s Irish Derby hero SOVEREIGN, while the Gr1 quintet is completed by dual Canadian International winner DESERT ENCOUNTER; Godolphin’s DREAM CASTLE and the David O’Meara-trained LORD GLITTERS.
The latter makes plenty of appeal, even though 2020 has so far proved a barren one for the grey. Winner of the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot two years ago, he’s contested a host of top-level races including a narrow defeat by Addeybb in the Doonside Cup, though he wasn’t able to contain CERTAIN LAD in a Gr3 at York in August. On more than one occasion he’s looked like a longer trip should prove the order of the day.
The £500,000 contest at the Sakhir racetrack has also attracted Andrew Balding’s BANGKOK and the John Gosden-trained GLOBAL GIANT, together with all the top British-based riders comprising Frankie Dettori, Ryan Moore, William Buick, Andrea Atzeni, Oisin Murphy, Silvestre De Sousa, and Danny Tudhope.
Tudhope observed Lord Glitters: “He’s been in great form all year and hasn’t put a foot wrong. He’s not won, but it looks like a mile and a quarter might be his best trip. It was a mile and a quarter behind Addeybb at Ayr and the form stacks up. We think he’s still got it. The track looks like it will play to his strengths. Last year’s winner came from the back and he has to be ridden that way. He takes a bit of winding up nowadays, so the extra two furlongs is going to help him.”
Classic winner SOVEREIGN goes into battle off a select campaign comprising just four starts through the summer and autumn. His best effort was in hunting up Enable in the King George at Ascot in late July, and he remains a colt with scope for progression.
GLOBAL GIANT has started favourite for each of his four races since joining Gosden at the start of the year. Winner of a minor contest at Wolverhampton and a Listed race at Newbury, he’s having a first outing since placing in a Haydock Group 3 back in early August.
Six-year-old mare DEIRDRE created history when taking out the Group 1 Nassau Stakes at Goodwood last year but hasn’t looked the same force in three starts through the summer and autumn. However, she is closely matched with PORT LIONS on Riyadh Saudi Cup form from back in February.
Port Lions is very much the local hope for trainer Fawzi Nass and looks to have progressed since his move to Bahrain from Ireland, where he won a handicap and conditions race last year.
