Saeed bin Suroor was back celebrating on Dubai World Cup Day as his fragile stayer Dubai Future ran out a dominant winner of the $1,000,000 Gr2 Dubai Gold Cup Sponsored by Al Tayer Motors
Silvestre De Sousa and nine-year-old Dubai Future (picture Dubai Racing Club/Liesl King)
Bin Suroor has won more runnings of the feature race than any other trainer but, like the Kahayla Classic’s winning trainer Doug Watson, has enjoyed a challenging season.
While once responsible for countless Godolphin luminaries and the pre-eminent World Cup hero Dubai Millennium, Bin Suroor is now operating with a considerably smaller string.
Yet the success of Dubai Future was the latest evidence of the trainer’s skill and patience as the nine-year-old has missed several periods of racing due to unsoundness.
The winner of the Group 3 Nad Al Sheba Trophy last time off the back of a 427-day absence, Dubai Future showed age has yet to blunt his class by delivering a sweeping late run under Silvestre de Sousa.
Trawlerman and Double Major were in no hurry to lead the ten-runner contest in the early stages but the sedate tempo proved no obstacle to Dubai Future, who swiftly took closer order in the home straight.
Pulled to the outside of the field by De Sousa, Dubai Future swiftly advanced on the rail-runner Straight, Trawlerman, Double Major and Epic Poet and pulled away to win by two and a quarter lengths.
Like Bin Suroor, De Sousa has enjoyed some of his finest moments at Meydan as he landed the Dubai Turf aboard Sajjhaa in 2013 and Dubai World Cup on African Story in 2014.
Double Major held second place for France, while Britain’s Epic Poet finished third.
“Congratulations to Saeed, he got him spot on and this sets the horse up for the season,” said De Sousa. “I told Saeed last time he only cantered round, just to take the freshness out of him.
“My concern was just to get him relaxed and for the first half of the race I had him just the way I wanted. He was breathing well and relaxed and he just took me there. I’m delighted for His Highness [Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum] and thankful for having the opportunity to ride this horse.”
Saeed Bin Suroor said: “He has improved this year, even though I know he’s nine years old but this year he came to Dubai a month ago and I know the way to train him. I told Silvestre to keep him behind and the key is to keep him relaxed.
“He is a mile and a quarter or mile and a half horse but we tried him over a mile and six and now two miles and he’s done well. ”
Double Major (2nd), jockey Maxime Guyon said: “He ran really good. Just into the first turn the horse behind me touched me a little bit so my horse was not comfortable and he just pulled a little bit. But he had a good turn of foot and he finished strong. He can win a Group 1 again this year.”
Epic Poet (3rd), jockey Danny Tudhope said: “They went slow and it didn’t suit him but he was okay. Because they went steady early on, he just didn’t see it out.”
Passion And Glory (4th), jockey Oisin Murphy said: “He was a bit keen, the pace was slow, he ran well. I am delighted for Saeed and Godolphin, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed.”
Trawlerman (5th), jockey William Buick said: “We didn’t go too hard, he would have preferred it more if it became more of a stamina test. But I thought he finished off well. He is a very honest horse.”
Trafalgar Square (6th), jockey Tadhg O’Shea said: “He ran good. He probably wants 2400m with an ease in the ground.”
Term Of Endearment (7th), jockey Tom Marquand said: “There was not much pace there but she’s a good filly and I’m sure we will have a lot of fun with her back home.”
Al Nayyir (8th), jockey Luke Morris said: “It was a very steadily run race and he’s a horse that’s best dropped in off a strongly run race. He probably just over-raced a fraction all the way. Hopefully there’ll be other days.”
Continuous (9th), jockey Dylan Browne McMonagle said: “The speed was very slow in the race and then it turned into a sprint. It didn’t suit us, he will be back for the another day.”
Straight (10th), jockey Thore Hammer Hansen said: “The pace was a bit too slow and he had too much to do in the end. He ran OK.”
