Benbatl Starts Season With Strong Singspiel Score

Benbatl kicked off his Dubai World Cup campaign with a comfortable win in the Jan. 9 Singspiel Stakes Presented by Longines Master Collection (G2) at Meydan. 

The Saeed bin Suroor-trained 1-8 shot, winner of the 2018 Dubai Turf Sponsored By DP World (G1), was confidently ridden by Christophe Soumillon and was never headed, his chance made easier when he faced only four rivals following the defection of last year's winner and stablemate Dream Castle. He becomes the first dual winner of the race, which was upgraded to group 2 status this year.

Sent straight to the front by Soumillon, the 6-year-old son of Dubawi never looked in any trouble with his ears pricked, and the pair dashed clear to win easily by 4 3/4 lengths.

"He went to the front really easily," Soumillon said. "I was quite surprised to see someone chasing me turning (into the stretch) because the pace was quite good; wasn't too slow. I was like, 'What's going on here?' But then my horse had a good blow. He really dominated the race. It was a good run for him.

"He always runs good fresh, but it's nice to build on this and get him as fit as possible for the big race. To be honest, it wasn't the best lesson for a horse to have him in the front as the big favorite, you take some risks, but today was like a morning gallop on his own. Next time, if he has a chance to get cover, it'll be better for him. Today he was the best horse in the field and probably Dubai at the moment."

Bin Suroor added: "He ran really well. I'm happy with him. He showed plenty of speed and was travelling really good. It didn't matter about the ground. The way he finished his race made me really happy."

A likely goal for Benbatl is a return to the March 28 Dubai Turf, but bin Suroor was not ready Thursday to commit to that goal.

"We'll keep the options open for him for the future. He was around 90% fit and he will improve from this race," bin Suroor added. "That (the Dubai Turf) could be an option. We'll leave (a decision) until later."

Thursday's feature race, the Al Maktoum Challenge R1 (G2) over a mile on dirt, produced a thrilling finish with last year's winner North America caught in the final strides by stablemate Secret Ambition, who was then denied by the Pat Dobbs-ridden Kimbear, completing a double on the card for Doug Watson. The photo-finish revealed it was Kimbear, for owner Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, on top by the slightest of margins.

Watson said: "I'm delighted for the horse as much as anything because he always tries his best and it's nice to see him back to his best.

"He's shown his customary gutsy attitude and you have to give Pat a lot of credit because that was a great ride."

The first leg of Watson's double came when Ekhtiyaar—a Meydan regular last year, including when runner-up to Blue Point in the Nad Al Sheba Turf Sprint Sponsored By Arabian Adventures (G3)—comfortably conceded weight to his seven rivals in the six furlong turf handicap. 

The Satish Seemar-trained Commanding gained revenge on Al Modayar, who had beaten him on his seven-furlong debut in November, with a battling victory in the UAE Two Thousand Guineas Trial, while Godolphin's Zakouski was the easy winner of the mile turf handicap for Charlie Appleby and William Buick.