East Coast on winning Road, treble for Al Hadhrami, doubles for Dawson, Pinheiro

By Duane Fonseca

The only Thoroughbred contest on the card also turned out to be the most engrossing of Al Ain’s seven race programme Saturday evening, with a second look at the finish definitely needed to determine Ismail Mohammed’s East Coast Road had won the 2600m Al Maqam handicap under Jose da Silva.

Mohammed, however, was hardly sweating as Gliding Bay, who was denied on the line under Omani apprentice Qais Al Busaidi, also represented his yard. And so it happened that the pair contested the straight at Al Ain virtually by themselves and were 14 clear at the finish from third placed Graffiti Master, trained by Musabbeh Al Mheiri and ridden by Antonio Fresu. 

Keeping pace with leader Attribution might have sapped Gliding Bay of that little bit extra needed to wrap up the finish, while East Coast Road was settled in the rear by Da Silva. Halfway through, Gliding Bay had taken up the running. Da Silva and his 5yo Iffraaj began to make progress around the same time and as they turned for home, East Coast Road was a few lengths behind with a lot left to be done but with momentum clearly in their favour.

Al Busaidi and Gliding Bay were desperate for the finish, but with East Coast Road blowing hard he managed to get ahead on the line and win by a neck.

Ibrahim Al Hadhrami completed a hat-trick winning the first three Purebred Arabian events back to back starting with the opening Wathba Stallions Cup 1800m handicap with Minwer, who was guided by Ray Dawson to a six and a quarter length success ahead of Algharbi, trained by Abubakar Daud and guided by Sandro Paiva.

The pair went two in two as Shareek won the Remah 2000m maiden by six and three fourths of a length from Hamad Al Marar’s Hamaan Al Jasra, the ride of Fernando Jara.

Al Hadhrami’s night got better when he completed his hat-trick in one of the co-feature events of the night the Al Muwaiji 2000m conditions run where Paiva guided Eaulympik home a length and three fourths clear of stablemate Rajel Al Cham, with Tadhg O’Shea up. Al Mheiri’s Smoke N Thunder was a neck back in third under Fresu.

The other feature run, the Al Khaznah 1800m handicap was won by Helal Alalawi and Bernardo Pinheiro with Al Mansour NF, who battled to beat the Al Hadhrami trained and Paiba driven Jawhar by a neck. A further four back in third was Majeedah Muscat for Al Hadhrami and Fresu.  

Al Mheiri and Fresu were rewarded in the penultimate event the Al Markhaniya, which was won by a comfortable three and a quarter length margin by Al Murtajel from RB Kings Bay (Alalawi-Pinheiro).

Pinheiro finished with a double after he piloting Najm Al Wathba, trained by Majed Al Jahoori, to a massive 12 and a half length triumph ahead of Surf Al Maury (Ahmed Al Mehairbi-Fernando Jara) in the 1400m Al Sarooj maiden.