Dane O’Neill delivered Sheikh Hamdan’s Haatheq, trained by Ali Rashid Al Raihe, to lead right on the line to clinch a thrilling victory in the 1950m Listed Jebel Ali Stakes on Friday afternoon.
They passed the post with just a nose to spare over Farrier, himself a neck in front of Sefri, also owned by Sheikh Hamdan, in a three way photo after a pulsating battle between the trio throughout the final 200m.
Sheikh Hamdan’s first jockey, Paul Hanagan, sent Sefri for home almost 800m out and soon had most of his 10 rivals in trouble. However, Richard Mullen and Farrier were making smooth progress 500m from home, with Haatheq also starting to throw down a challenge.
Hanagan dropped his whip about 300m from home but his mount ran on gamely and was only headed at the 200m pole. Challenged on both sides, Sefri refused to give in, fighting back gamely, but was clearly third best of the trio on the line.
However, with him dividing the other pair, it was far from clear who had won as they flashed across the line and attention swung to the judge. The verdict went the way of the gallant 9yo Haatheq, finally posting a big race win after so many near misses in such races, including finishing second in this very race in 2011.
O’Neill said: “He is so brave and will not give up in a fight. He just dug deeper and deeper and responded to everything I asked him.”
Hanagan did win the 1200m handicap for Sheikh Hamdan, aboard Odooj, trained by Musabah Al Muhairi. The 1000m Jebel Ali Sprint Prep was won by United Color, trained on the track by Dhruba Selvaratnam and was too strong for stable companion Morawij.
