Al Maktoum Challenge | Horse Racing Free Tips

Quip Adds Blinkers For Thursday’s Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2

Thursday's Group 2, $293,000 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 over 1900m (9.5 furlongs) has drawn a field filled with questions soon to be answered on the road to the $12 million Dubai World Cup (G1). Many of those queries circulate around the conditions of the race, whether it be the dirt surface for turf-bred full-brothers Dubai Warrior and Mootasadir, class-level for Firnas, Mark of Approval and Ajuste Fiscal, or the distance for assumed milers Quip, Salute the Soldier, Thegreatcollection, Blown By Wind and Capezzano.

RRR Racing's 6-year-old Quip offers arguably the most intrigue on Thursday. A Satish Seemar trainee, the 2019 Oaklawn Handicap (G2) winner makes just his 15th start and second this season after finishing a non-threatening ninth last out in the Al Maktoum Challenge R1 (G2) at one mile. He does have a victory in lofty American company over nine furlongs, but has not raced to that form in three Dubai tries. That said, with his light campaigning, a fitness-building race under his belt and a change of equipment, it would not be a surprise to see him jump back into the win column.

“Quip is training really well,” said Bhupat Seemar, assistant trainer. “He has blinkers on the first time. All the speed horses are drawn on the inside, so it's unfortunately not the best draw in eight. With how he's training and what he does in the morning–if he can bring that in the evening–he's going to go very, very close. Hopefully that's what's going to happen.”

Drawn on the rail is the speed of the speed in the race, Capezzano, who has not shown much prowess beyond one mile since winning the 2019 Al Maktoum Challenge R3 (G1) over 10 furlongs and a speed-favoring course. In fact, his only performance to that level in five subsequent starts was a stakes record-setting win in last year's one-mile Firebreak (G3).

Meanwhile, ultra-consistent 2020 Burj Nahaar (G3) winner Salute the Soldier is racing 200m farther than he ever has for trainer Fawzi Nass and Doug Watson-trained Thegreatcollection steps up after a pair of career-best runs over one mile, including a second in Round 1.

“The post (seven) doesn't really matter too much with him, as I think they will spread out a bit,” Watson said. “I believe he will stay the trip. His dam won over 1800m.”

Blown By Wind is an unknown quantity over these conditions. A handicapper who consistently competed at a mile in the UK for Mark Johnston, he was turned over to Salem bin Ghadayer, who also trains Capezzano and Listed winner Firnas, and rewarded the yard with an overpowering four-length win in the Jebel Ali Mile (G3) in his second local start. Though his rating has inflated to 110, he must back it up while stretching out an additional 300m and against G2 company. He was flattered when the runner-up that day, Secret Ambition, returned to win last week's Firebreak (G3) by open lengths.

Much focus will be on Dubai Warrior, who leads the ratings at 115, but has never been tested on traditional dirt. A six-time winner on all-weather, including the G3 Winter Derby in 2020 over Saudi Cup-bound Bangkok, the John Gosden trainee must overcome a pedigree that appears a bit counterintuitive to the venture.

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Uruguayan Star Ajuste Fiscal Seeking Dubai World Cup Invite, Tops Thursday’s Al Maktoum Challenge

Uruguayan star Ajuste Fiscal tops a seemingly strong contingent brought by Dubai World Cup Carnival-winning conditioner Antonio Cintra when he starts in Thursday's Group 2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 at Meydan Racecourse.

Owned by Stud La Pomme, the apple of the Cintra operation enters off a Listed victory over this distance on grass in September, but is proven at the G1 level in the past on dirt, including resounding victories in the Gran Premio Pedro Ramirez over 12 furlongs, Gran Premio Jockey Club over 10 furlongs and Gran Premio Polla de Potrillos over one mile.

Ajuste Fiscal is sired by the Illinois-bred multiple Grade 3 winner Ioya Bigtime (Dynaformer).

It would, of course, not be a surprise to see a Uruguayan horse succeed in Dubai, thanks to the exploits of the great Invasor.

“It's a pleasure to be a part of this event again and I'm really happy to be back here,” said Cintra, who won the 2006 Al Shindagha Sprint with Heart Alone. “Ajuste Fiscal is the best horse that I brought. He's a very good horse on dirt and the distance (one mile) is a little bit short for him, but it's a good (place) to start. The plan is the second and third rounds of the Maktoum (Challenge). He is the top horse, but he will get very tough races–but I believe he can get an invitation for the World Cup.”

Cintra will be busy on opening night of the Carnival, also saddling Stud Crespi's 14-time winner Almoradi, a G1-placed multiple G3 winner, in the Al Fahidi Fort (G2) over seven furlongs on turf, as well as Stud Guara del Sur's exciting 4-for-4 sprinter Upper Class in the Dubawi (G3). A Listed winner, the latter must step up considerably, but has done little wrong thus far and appears a strong finisher who will enjoy a step back up to six furlongs.

Cintra: “(Almoradi) is a good horse on dirt and turf and we planned to run him on dirt, but he wasn't looking good on this kind of dirt. It was a little soft for him, so we're trying to turf. Upper Class is unbeaten and is a very good sprinter. He's three years old and gets two kilos. Hopefully he'll run very well. He runs just on dirt, but the pedigree is a turf horse. We'll start on dirt with him.”

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Military March To Follow Benbatl Route

Last year’s G3 Autumn S. winner Military March (GB) (New Approach {Ire}), a leading fancy for the G1 Investec Derby before meeting with a setback in the lead-up to the race, will follow a similar path over the winter to his Saeed bin Suroor stablemate Benbatl (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), the trainer said. Military March, last seen finishing fourth in the G1 2000 Guineas on June 6, is training towards an autumn return in Europe and will later target dirt races in Dubai.

“Military March is back in light training,” bin Suroor said. “We are not going to rush him and he will be out at the end of September or early October, where we will find a race for him. The horse is doing well physically. We will look to give him one more run in England, then take him to Dubai–but he needs to have one more run here to make sure he is fit when he goes out there as he is a big horse. We will target one of the Al Maktoum Challenge races to start with to see if he handles the dirt. Everyone is always searching for a horse for the Dubai World Cup and if he did well on the dirt he could be a horse for the race. We will have to see how he handles the dirt, but if he doesn’t we would switch him back to the turf. It is too early to say what the future plans will be, but if the dirt didn’t work out we could look at the Dubai Turf or Sheema Classic.”

As for Benbatl, who won the G2 Singspiel S. and G2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 over the winter at Meydan and was last seen finishing third in the Saudi Cup, he is expected to resurface next in the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois on Aug. 16 or the G1 Juddmonte International on Aug. 19.

“We will have a look at which race to go for closer to the time, as it doesn’t matter if he goes a mile or mile and a quarter,” bin Suroor said. “He always runs well fresh, like we saw when he won the Group 2 at Newmarket. We were getting him ready for the Dubai World Cup and he was flying, but he didn’t get the chance to run [with the meeting cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic] so we decided to give him a break as he had already had three runs.”

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