Ex-Godolphin work rider and top American trainer Brendan Walsh is a soft-spoken man with an Irish lilt. He watched his dream to win in Dubai come true in fantastic style, when his first and only runner on the Dubai World Cup card, Plus Que Parfait, won the US$2.5 1900m affair
Under a perfect ride by Jose Ortiz, who won his second race on the Dubai World Cup card in as many tries, Plus Que Parfait earned 100 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby in May. The son of Point of Entry found racing room in the field of 14 at the top of the straight and after the rider switched him to the inside, he accelerated between Gray Magician and Manguzi and dug in to prevail by three-quarters of a length.
Plus Que Parfait, which means more than perfect in French boosted his lifetime earnings to the US $1,949,800.
Shadwell’s Kentucky Derby aspirant Jahbath was disappointing in his maiden Dubai run. His jockey Jim Crowley said, “He didn’t have the gate speed or tactical speed that you need in that sort of race. It is a very different style of racing to what he is used to in England and he was beaten before the home turn.”
Divine Image also disappointed. The filly hasn’t put a single wrong foot all season at Meydan. She landed 13th in finishing order. “She just sat back as the gates opened and I had to give her a bit of a squeeze, but we ended up in a good spot. I had to work for it a little bit. She felt OK down the back but approaching the last turn, about half a mile (800m) out, she came underneath me and had kind of ran her race. It was disappointing,” said her jockey William Buick.
Race Conditions:
Distance: 1,900 metres (1 3/16 miles), Surface: dirt, left-handed, Qualification: 3-year-olds from the Northern & 4-year-olds from the Southern Hemisphere, Weight: NH: 54.5kg. - SH: 59.5kg Allowance fillies 2kg., Purse: US$2,500,000
When & Where: 30th March 2019 at Meydan Racecourse, UAE
Credit: Curated from press releases received from Dubai Racing Club