LONDON: Godolphin will decide whether to race Dream Castle in the Group 1 Dubai Turf on World Cup night
at Meydan.
The Saeed bin Suroor-trained five-year-old won the Jebel Hatta on Super Saturday to open up the possibility of more success in two weeks’ time. Ridden by Christophe Soumillon, Dream Castle outfought fellow Godolphin horses Wootton and First Contact to win the nine-furlong turf highlight.
The son of Frankel had it all to do coming back from second-last with two furlongs to go, but displayed an impressive turn of speed to storm to victory, as he won by a length and a quarter from Wootton in 1 minute 48.17 seconds on good ground with First Contact in third.
Now the Dubai-based stable has to decide if Dream Castle will go for more glory on World Cup night.
“Dream Castle is doing really well and he reminds me of Benbatl, who also won the Singspiel Stakes and Al Rashidiya last year before finishing second in this race,” bin Suroor said.
“In the old days, some of the jockeys would get off Dream Castle and say that he was a sprinter and should be racing over five or six furlongs, but I believed that this distance would be his best trip.
“We have campaigned him over nine furlongs this year and he has shown his class, winning a Group 3, a Group 2 and now a Group 1 race. It is a great result for us.
“We will leave it to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed to make a decision, but we could take him to the G1 Dubai Turf (9f) on Dubai World Cup night.
“All of the team work very well and this victory gives us lots of confidence.”
Soumillon, who is looking for a good Word Cup night on March 30, declared: “The last two wins were quite impressive and I was really confident with him, even with the nine draw.
“The race went well for us, with a nice pace. When I saw I was behind Wootton, I was very confident, because I knew he was going to take me quite far.
“When I asked Dream Castle to go, he really quickened sharply. After I hit the front, he was looking around for a while. He is a really different horse compared with last year, when he was
a colt.”
Meanwhile, Godolphin are hopeful Old Persian can grab glory on World Cup night with the four-year-old going in the Group 1 Sheema Classic. Ridden by William Buick, the Dubawi colt pipped
Racing History on the line in a thrilling finish to win the Group 2 Dubai City of Gold race. That has made the “Boys in Blue” excited about more success on World Cup night.
“Old Persian has a bright future ahead of him — he is already a three-time G2 winner now, having won at Royal Ascot and beaten Cross Counter at York before tonight,” trainer Charlie Appleby said.
“We took the gamble of running him in the St. Leger last season, but the petrol gauge ran out
between the three-furlong and two-furlong pole that time, and we were very pleased with
his preparation coming into this evening.
“We have our eyes firmly set on the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic (1m 4f) on Dubai World Cup night, so hopefully there is still a little bit of improvement to come.
“He was a bit fresh in the paddock tonight and there should be a bit more to come.”
Godolphin ponder Meydan mission for Dream Castle
Godolphin ponder Meydan mission for Dream Castle
Zemmer fires 7-birdie round to lead Hilton Classic in Morocco
- 5-under round leaves Zimmer 1 shot ahead of compatriot Matteo Cristoni as Italy dominates early leaderboard
TANGIER: Italy’s Aron Zemmer produced a composed and clinical display to card a five-under-par opening round and claim the first-round lead at the Hilton Classic here on Monday.
Zemmer’s compatriot Matteo Cristoni was just one shot behind, giving the Azzurri a strong early lead at the second event of the MENA Golf Tour’s Morocco Series at Al-Houara Golf Club in Tangier.
Zemmer, who started from the 10th tee, carded seven birdies against two bogeys in strong, swirling wind that made scoring difficult throughout the field.
He birdied three consecutive holes from the third before adding another at the ninth to make the turn four-under, and despite dropping shots at 11 and 12, responded with birdies at 15 and 18 to sign for a 67.
Despite a three-putt early in his round, Zemmer was in good spirits, riding the confidence of a strong performance at last week’s Al -Houara Classic. “To make seven birdies in those conditions is very pleasing,” Zemmer said.
“I came into the week feeling confident after playing well last week, and my iron play was solid which allowed me to go at a few pins. I made a small adjustment to my putting setup which definitely helped today.”
Also starting from the 10th, Cristoni was equally impressive, making birdies at 10 and 13 before picking up further shots at the third, fourth and sixth on the front nine. A sole bogey at the seventh was the only blemish on a four-under 68.
Ireland’s Alex Maguire shares second place on four-under par after a round that featured arguably the shot of the day, an eagle at the par-five 15th alongside four birdies.
Maguire admitted he had been hard on himself after a disappointing finish at last week’s Al-Houara Classic but found inspiration on the morning of his round from a fellow Irishman, Ryder Cup star Shane Lowry.
Lowry’s widely-reported interview about throwing away a three-shot lead down the stretch at the Cognizant Classic on the PGA Tour struck a chord. “It was very, very gusty and in many ways it felt like it got harder as the round went on,” Maguire said.
“The front nine was more constant, you could read the wind and commit to a number, but on the back nine it became really unpredictable. It’s much more about feel and experience in these conditions.
“The first thing I saw this morning was Shane Lowry talking about going through something similar at a much bigger event and saying you’ve just got to keep teeing it up and not dwell on it.
“It helped me stop feeling sorry for myself and just get on with it, and I think that showed today.”
Four players share fourth place on three-under par: France’s Pierre Pineau, Scotland’s Sebastian Sandin, England’s Curtis Knipes and Pakistan’s Aadam Syed.
Pineau, who chipped in twice on what he described as two of the toughest holes on the course, credited his experience of playing in Ireland and Scotland for helping him handle the breeze.
“My driving was especially solid and I played very well tee to green,” Pineau said. “Having played so many tournaments in Ireland and Scotland, I’m used to these kinds of conditions.”
Knipes, who felt he benefited from the draw as the wind eased later in his round, was encouraged by his form heading into the second day.
“The wind was pumping and swirling at times but my game feels in a better spot than last week,” he said. “When you look at the scoring overall it’s a very good round in those conditions.”
Seven players are tied for eighth on two-under par: Toby Hunt (Wales), Haiko Dana (Spain), Alfonso Buendia (Spain), Michael Stewart (Scotland), Zubair Firdaus (Malaysia), Brody Harbinson (Australia) and Andoni Etchenique (France).
Ayoub Lguirati was the highest-placed Moroccan, the home favorite carding a level-par round to share 18th position and keeping local interest alive in the tournament.
Round two takes place on Tuesday, with the final round on Wednesday. The Hilton Classic has a prize fund of $100,000 and awards Official World Golf Ranking points.
