Doctor Dino eclipses Moon in Hong Kong Vase

Doctor Dino (center) arrived in the nick of time (Photo courtesy of Hong Kong Jockey Club)

Javier Martinez Salmean's DOCTOR DINO (Fr) (Muhtathir [GB]) engineered a

last-to-first rally to shade Purple Moon (Galileo [Ire]) and Jaguar Mail (Jungle

Pocket) at the wire in Sunday's $1.8 million Hong Kong Vase (HK-G1). The margin was

much closer than Doctor Dino's clear-cut score here in 2007, but it was enough

for him to become the first horse to win back-to-back Vases since Luso in

1996-97. Trained by Richard Gibson and ridden by Olivier Peslier, the

well-traveled chestnut reeled off about 1 1/2 miles in 2:29.14 on Sha Tin's good

turf.

To defend his title, Doctor Dino had to overcome a slow pace. The

front-running Packing Winner (Zabeel) carved out deliberate splits of :27.27,

:52.58, 1:18.16, 1:42.78 and 2:05.86. Douro Valley (Encosta de Lago) and

Mourilyan (Ire) (Desert Prince [Ire]) tracked in second and third, respectively,

while Purple Moon was an unexpectedly close fourth. Although Jackpot Delight (Danasinga)

took a run at the leader at the mile mark, he soon faded, and Purple Moon loomed

as the most ominous threat.

The top three were separated by two noses (Photo courtesy of Hong Kong Jockey Club)

"He moved well down the back straight and being on the outside helped him,"

Peslier said. "He takes a little time to wind up but the horse who came at me on

the outside (Jaguar Mail) also helped me."

Purple Moon staved off Jaguar

Mail by a nose for second. It was the second

time that Purple Moon had come agonizingly close to Group 1 glory. In last

year's Melbourne Cup (Aus-G1), the Luca Cumani charge looked like the winner

until cut down late by Efficient (Zabeel).

Winning trainer Gibson paid tribute to the valiant runner-up.

Purple Moon (second) looked to be in the driver's seat turning for home (Photo courtesy of Hong Kong Jockey Club)

For his part, Cumani was equally proud of Purple Moon.

"I am very proud with the way the horse ran," Cumani said. "I don't mind when

they get beaten when they run to their very best."

"He has done nothing wrong," rider Jamie Spencer said of Purple Moon. "It was

a big step up on his effort in Japan (when ninth in a paceless Japan Cup

[Jpn-G1]). He was the winner everywhere bar the line."

Doctor Dino is pleased with his effort, while Olivier Peslier acknowledges the crowd (Photo courtesy of Hong Kong Jockey Club)

Doctor Dino's scorecard now reads 29-9-5-8 with earnings hovering around $3.9

million. Successful in the Prix Andre Baboin (Fr-G3) and the Prix de Boulogne in

2006, he improved significantly in 2007. Doctor Dino finished third to Dylan

Thomas (Ire) in the Prix Ganay (Fr-G1), and filled that same spot in the

Singapore Airlines International Cup (Mal-G1) and Arlington Million S. (G1),

before breaking through with a determined victory over Sunriver in the Man o'

War S. (G1) at Belmont. He was an unlucky third in the Champion S. (Eng-G1),

where he suffered interference. but rebounded with a 1 1/2-length triumph in the

Vase. This year, Doctor Dino added the Grand Prix de Chantilly (Fr-G2) to his

resume, along with placings in the Dubai Sheema Classic (UAE-G1), Grand Prix de

Saint-Cloud (Fr-G1) and Grand Prix de Deauville (Fr-G2). He was coming off an

uncharacteristically dull fifth in the Canadian International (Can-G1).

Bred by Ecurie Pelder in France, Doctor Dino was sold for $41,325 as a

Deauville August yearling in 2003. He was produced by the winning Logica (Priolo)

and hails from the family of Grade 3 victress and Grade 1-placed Millie's Quest

(Quest for Fame [GB]). Tracing the female line much further back, one finds

Irish and German champion Shady Heights (GB) (Shirley Heights), English champion

and sire *Tudor Melody (*Tudor Minstrel) and Matron S. winner Hasty Matelda

(Hasty Road), herself the dam of Alabama S. queen Gay Matelda (Sir Gaylord) and

granddam of multiple Group 2 victress Reine Mathilde (*Vaguely Noble).