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First City just foils Mahbooba in Cape Verdi
Mahbooba began to kick away from her longtime stalkers, only to have First City rally to join her in an all-out war to the line. It was a battle between a powerful galloper and a specialist miler, and First City's extra gear made the narrow difference. First City stopped the teletimer in 1:38 1/5 on the good turf course to earn her first career stakes coup after five placings, all at the Group level. Another 4 1/2 lengths behind the duelists came Reem, who edged Hurricane Havoc for third. Al Sharood, Marvada, Rhythm of Light and Sooraah completed the order of finish. "We were hoping for a big run," Ffrench said of First City, "as she was going nicely at home in the mornings and her form in Europe was very good. She has finished very strongly to get there in the last strides and I was not sure we had won when we flashed past. It is great that we did, and I assume we will probably come back for the Balanchine Stakes (Group 2 on February 17) and take it from there." After another tilt in distaff company in the Balanchine, First City plans to take on males. "We will look at the (Group 1) Dubai Duty Free on World Cup night (March 31) long term," al Raihe said, "perhaps after the Balanchine and Super Saturday (the Group 1 Jebel Hatta on March 10)." First City boosted her bankroll to $288,814 from her 24-3-4-4 line. Formerly based in Newmarket with trainer David Simcock, the bay had placed in the Group 3 Nell Gwyn Stakes as a sophomore in 2009 and in the Group 3 Supreme Stakes in 2010. She showed improved form as a five-year-old in 2011, finishing second in the Group 3 Princess Elizabeth and third in both the Group 2 Windsor Forest at Royal Ascot and the Group 1 Falmouth during Newmarket's July meeting. Subsequently fourth to Goldikova in the Group 1 Prix Rothschild, First City was shelved following a subpar fifth in the Superior Mile at Haydock September 3, and reappeared off a four-month layoff on Friday. Bred by Darley in Great Britain, First City is by Diktat and out of the unraced Carson City mare City Maiden. The winner's second dam is Grade 2 victress Marble Maiden, who comes from the extended family of Grade 1 queen Dreams Gallore and current Kentucky Derby hopeful Union Rags.
In light of his lackluster efforts over the course of 2011, Prince Bishop was gelded last fall, and his form immediately turned around. Showcasing his new and improved attitude in the November 2 Floodlit Stakes over Kempton's Polytrack, he bolted up in course-record time. Prince Bishop, two-for-two as a gelding, sports a mark of 13-6-1-0, $318,540. "Prince Bishop has improved a lot from last year and he looks much better physically," bin Suroor told the Godolphin website. "He was 85 percent fit today but he has won easily and I think that he will improve for this run. "We will keep the options open for him at the moment and see how he comes out of the race, but he could take his chance in one of the remaining rounds of the Maktoum Challenge (Round 2 on February 9 and Round 3 on March 10)." De Kock had better luck elsewhere on the card with new recruit Mutahadee, a slashing four-length winner of a turf handicap in his Dubai debut. Under Soumillon, the Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum colorbearer swept past tiring pacesetter War Monger and drew off to finish about nine grassy furlongs in 1:49 4/5. Rounding out the all-de Kock exacta was Viscount Nelson, another first-time starter for the yard. The ex-Aidan O'Brien campaigner, who is being leased from Coolmore, lumped top weight of 132 pounds and got up for second over Alrasm and War Monger.
He reported home third to the crack filly Banimpire and the useful Dunboyne Express in the Group 2 Royal Whip, and ended his abbreviated season with a fourth to onetime Melbourne Cup prospect Galileo's Choice in the Group 3 Kilternan on September 3. Interestingly, Viscount Nelson was also last seen in the Kilternan, bringing up the rear in seventh. Mutahadee, whose resume now reads 5-2-0-2, $118,287, is a half-brother to Grade 1 hero Subtle Power. Their dam, the unraced Shirley Heights mare Mosaique Bleue, is in turn a half-sister to Group 1 winners Muncie and Mersey. Singapore-based horseman Steve Burridge, who lifted the January 12 U.A.E. Two Thousand Guineas Trial with Dark Matter, sent out another winner in the form of Captain Obvious. With Oscar Chavez picking up the mount from the injured Benny Woodworth, the Australian-bred gray pounced and held off the late runners in the about six-furlong Tapeta handicap. The strength of the form was underlined by the second and third-place finishers. Group 3 winner Hitchens, third in last year's Group 1 July Cup and most recently sixth in the Grade 1 Nearctic, rallied for the runner-up spot from fellow Group 3 scorer Iver Bridge Lad. Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed al Maktoum's Jamr lasted from Godolphin's Measuring Time by a short head in the Friday opener, thus remaining perfect for Mubarak bin Shafya. Driven to the front about a quarter-mile out by Pat Cosgrave, Jamr opened up by daylight in the about 11-furlong affair on Tapeta. Then Measuring Time, a $521,158 Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training purchase, gave chase and fell just short at the wire. "He has now won all three starts since joining us," Cosgrave said, "and has improved from each start. He probably stays further than this so I was happy to go for home at the top of the straight and luckily they could not catch me." Blue Panis, a $188,314 purchase by Prime Equestrian SARL at the Arqana Arc Sale, rolled to a convincing 2 1/4-length score in the nightcap. Scything through the field for Olivier Peslier, the five-year-old grabbed command of the about one-mile turf handicap, and handed trainer Xavier Thomas Demeaulte his first-ever win in the Emirates. In his first outing for his new connections, Blue Panis was runner-up at Marseille Pont de Vivaux on December 6. For former trainer Fabrice Chappet, he captured a pair of French stakes and recorded five stakes placings, including the Grade 2 Oak Tree Derby and last year's Group 2 Oettingen-Rennen at Baden-Baden.
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