Treble Jig continues to re-write the UAE racing record books and, already the only horse to have won both the Jebel Ali Stakes and Mile, he repeated his victory in the former at Jebel Ali on Friday afternoon to become the only horse to have won the Listed 1950m feature twice.
Trained by Musabah Al Muhairi, he has now won all four of his four course starts with stable jockey Wayne Smith aboard on each occasion. Once the pair committed for home 600m out the race was all over as a contest and they were almost nine lengths clear at the line - one length less than last year.
“He just loves Jebel Ali – the surface and the hill,” said Smith. “He is a different horse here and once he hits that hill he finds top gear and a real surge of power. We will be back in two weeks to defend our crown in the Mile and will then look at the Dubai World Cup Carnival.”
The race was kindly sponsored by Derrinstown Stud, the Irish arm of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s breeding empire.
Treble Jig is owned by Fathi Esaed Mohd Egziama as is last year’s Jebel Ali Sprint winner Russian Rocks and he completed a memorable double on the card for connections in the concluding 1000m handicap over the same course and distance as his big race win last year.
Only five ran and Smith was never far off the pace on Russian Rock, another who clearly thrives at Jebel Ali, before hitting the front 300m out and the pair stormed clear. A beaming Smith said: “Both these two won here a fortnight ago and we were hoping they could again. They have both won well and it has been a great day.
“It would be lovely to think we can win the Mile again with Treble Jig and Sprint with Russian Rock.”
Champion Jockey, Tadhg O’Shea was also in double form and his first winner, Capital Attraction, will also be seen at Meydan in the near future. He is trained by Ernst Oertel and was a very easy winner of a 1400m handicap and the trainer said: “We had hoped to run at Meydan last night but were eliminated so came here to try and increase our handicap mark. Hopefully that has worked and we will look for something back at Meydan for him.”
Thirty minutes later the jockey was back in the winner’s enclosure after the Satish Seemar-trained Al Razi scored a comfortable victory in a 1200m handicap. O’Shea said: “I always thought I was going to win as he was travelling so strongly.”
Haatheq, runner-up to Treble Jig in last year’s Jebel Ali Mile, will seek his revenge in a fortnight's time after winning the course and distance prep race under Paul Hanagan, riding for his main employer HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Champion Trainer Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
Hanagan said: “He did that nicely enough and things went more to plan this time than when second to Treble Jig two weeks ago. We will take him on again in the Jebel Ali Mile in a fortnight.”
Racing opened with a 1600m conditions race for Purebred Arabians and having taken seven attempts to open his account at Sharjah four weeks ago, the Ibrahim Al Hadhrami-trained AK Kamaash doubled his winning tally with Silvestre De Sousa performing the steering.
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