Mickaël Barzalona
From Epsom to Dubai, the Corsica-born Mickaël Barzalona is developing into a young jockey with a happy talent for winning the biggest events, and doing so in style. Nine months after he stood up in the irons to celebrate before the line in the Derby, he did it again on Monterosso in the final strides of the Dubai World Cup here on Saturday night, and unlike at Epsom, there was no chance that any of his rivals might close in.
Barzalona was riding in the race for the first time since being officially recruited to the Godolphin team, presumably to replace Frankie Dettori as the No1 when the Italian eventually retires. It could not have unfolded any better for him, as he kicked Monterosso into a clear lead halfway down the straight and maintained it all the way to the line to win by three lengths. Capponi was second and Planteur third, with So You Think, the favourite, only fourth.
It was clear at Epsom last year that Barzalona has the same star quality as Dettori, the ability to do things that grab the attention of the wider sporting public. He has now won both the world’s most famous Flat race and its most valuable, and all before his 21st birthday as he prepares to join up with Godolphin’s huge string in Newmarket for the start of the European turf season.
South African champion trainer Mike de Kock hoped for more but wasn’t overly disappointed with his haul at Dubai World Cup 2012.
“I said often in the week before that I would be happy with two second places on the night and that’s what I got,” said De Kock at the end of the meeting.
The meeting started well for South Africa with trainer Ernst Oertel sending out Seraphin Du Paon to finish second to USA challenger TM Fred Texas in the opener for Arabians.
And then De Kock’s charge Viscount Nelson ran on strongly under Kevin Shea to chase home four-length winner African Story in the first of the eight races for thoroughbreds, the $1-million Godolphin Mile, earning $200,000 for his efforts.
De Kock was hoping for a big run from Mickdaam in the $2-million UAE Derby, but the colt hesitated at the jump and was always under pressure from that point. Christophe Soumillon didn’t help Mickdaam’s cause by coming down the inside and running into traffic problems. They eventually did well to finish fourth, 3.25 lengths behind Irish trainer Aidan O’Brien’s Daddy Long Legs, who went early in the straight and battled on resolutely.
De Kock’s War Artist never got into the hunt in the $1-million Al Quoz Sprint over 1000m on turf, which was won by Australian mare Ortensia who has been rejuvenated by a change of stable and was posting her second Group 1 success in a row.
Herman Brown’s August Rush finished fifth in the race and that was the Durban trainer’s best result on a sad night for the stable – his Bronze Cannon broke a leg in the rerun of the $1-million Dubai Gold Cup and stablemate Mikhail Glinka was pulled up in the same race.
South African Pat Shaw was optimistic about his Singapore-based Rocket Man winning the $2-million Golden Shaheen over 1200m on the synthetic track, but his charge was blown away late by locally trained Krypton Factor.
“He had to go a bit too quickly early to hold his position from No 1 draw and could only stay on at the end on a track that gave no assistance. It was a good run and if he can run the same race in the Krisflyer Sprint in May he’ll win,” said Shaw.
De Kock’s biggest payday of the night came in the $5million Dubai Duty Free over 1800m, in which his charge Mutahadee earned $1-million for finishing second behind four-length winner Cityscape.
It was an incredible performance by the winner, who shot half a dozen lengths clear early in the straight and won unchallenged. “When we turned into the straight, I couldn’t believe the turn of foot he had. He kept finding more. It’s amazing,” said winning jockey James Doyle.
De Kock’s Mahbooba finished fifth in the $5-million Sheema Classic, in which accomplished French mare Cirrus Des Aigles got first run and kept going to stave off St Nicholas Abbey by a neck.
De Kock’s other runner, Bold Silvano, made much of the running but clearly hated every moment of it once the tempo began to increase and finished a distance behind. There is something troubling him and his racing days are clearly over.
De Kock was never happy that Master Of Hounds was in the Dubai World Cup, but his charge ran a fair race to finish 7.50 lengths back and the evening ended well for the stable when Zanzamar ran on to finish a close third behind Opinion Poll in the Gold Cup run at the end of the meeting due to the fatal fall of Fox Hunt.
