Connections are hoping for a more prominent showing from the French raider Al Wukair when he lines up in the 2,000 Guineas on Saturday as the likely third-favourite. The unbeaten colt gave his rivals plenty of rope before finishing strongly to win the Prix Djebel at Maisons-Laffitte last month, a feat that would be much harder to pull off in a high-quality Guineas, as this one is expected to be.
“When you have André Fabre as your trainer and he’s being as bullish and as positive as he is, it’s very exciting,” said Harry Herbert, racing adviser to the owner, Al Shaqab. But Herbert accepts that Al Wukair’s unbeaten record will be in some peril if he trails Churchill by 10 lengths at halfway, which is how much ground he had to make up on the Djebel leaders in the final half-mile.
“I thought, in the Djebel, it looked as if he was slightly dossing,” said Herbert, who believes the likely stronger pace on Saturday will help Al Wukair. “Gregory [Benoist] looked very relaxed on him. I thought: ‘This is very odd. We’re not going to be able to give Churchill all that distance and beat him.’ But then he finished so strongly.
“I mentioned it to André and he dismissed the whole thing. I was almost reprimanded for asking. Anyway, I hope he would be tight there [behind the Guineas pace] and then use his turn of foot to best effect. If he hangs out the back as he did in France, that’s unlikely to work.”
The mere fact that Fabre wants to run Al Wukair in the Newmarket Classic seems a positive sign. The Frenchman has been represented in the race on only nine occasions, winning twice and saddling the second on two others. This colt will be his third runner since Xaar was a disappointing favourite 19 years ago.
Herbert reports that no effort was made to steer Fabre towards running the colt in England this year. “Early in the spring, he told me: ‘I’m going to run him in the Djebel to get some experience and then we can think about the English Guineas.’ According to André, his work-rider says he’s the best he’s ever sat on.
“He’s very well balanced, he’s got a very good cruising speed and he’s got a fantastic turn of foot. That’s what we hope will stand him in good stead. I think he’s straightforward and uncomplicated.
“There’s a bit of inexperience about him. He won so easily as a two-year-old and again this year, you could argue he’s never had to battle and so what will happen when he does? We don’t know.”
Fortunately, there is no sign of any lingering effects from the virus that got in the way of Fabre and so many other Chantilly trainers last year. “I think it probably affected all the horses to a degree,” Herbert says. “It really ripped through the yard and some horses were laid very low. It completely buggered up the year for André.
“When I saw the horses this spring, you could immediately see the difference in them. And the results are showing that he’s on fire.” Fabre has already had nine Group-race wins in France this year, which took him until October last season.
While there has been so much talk about the exploits of Frankel as a stallion in the past year, Al Wukair is a son of Dream Ahead, famously beaten by Frankel in the 2010 Dewhurst. The Guineas on Saturday will be the first English Classic in which Frankel has had runners, so victory for Dream Ahead would represent a kind of belated revenge.
Meanwhile, 26 of the 40 jockeys who took part in the Grand National last month have been charged with a breach of the rules concerning the start to the race, the sport’s ruling body believing they approached the tape too early and before being asked to do so. None of the 26 is expected to attend when the matter is heard on Friday.
Friday’s tips, by Chris Cook
Chepstow
1.20 Icebuster 1.50 Perfect Quest 2.20 Laraaib 2.50 Babyfact 3.20 War Chief 3.50 Charlie Victor 4.20 Master Dancer 4.50 Sigurd (nb)
Musselburgh
2.00 Prazeres 2.30 Faithful Promise 3.00 Atteq 3.30 Go George Go 4.00 Election Day (nap) 4.30 Vallarta 5.00 Cosmic Ray
Lingfield
2.10 Willwams 2.40 Time’s Arrow 3.10 Staffa 3.40 Highly Sprung 4.10 Bumptious 4.45 Pharoh Jake 5.20 Arab Moon
Fontwell
4.55 Prince Mahler 5.25 Jaunty Inflight 5.55 Work In Progress 6.25 Dawnieriver 7.00 Talkischeap 7.35 Itoldyou 8.05 Canford Chimes
Cheltenham
5.10 Are They Your Own 5.40 Pride Of Parish 6.10 Always Archie 6.45 Barrel Of Laughs 7.20 The Flying Doc 7.50 Jepeck 8.25 Full Trottle
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