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| Staff Writer |
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The Gr.3 Jebel Ali Mile on Saturday saw a second victory for the father and son training partnership of Simon and Ed Crisford. Swing Vote, ridden by William Buick, won the event with a stylish near four-length finish.
The 4YO Shamardal gelding, seemingly stranded in traffic 600m out, justified his top billing after Buick nudged him left towards the standside rail, allowing him to take the scenic route and quicken effortlessly to win. Salem bin Ghadayer's Down On Da Bayou, the 2020 UAE Oaks heroine, finished second, followed by Musabbeh Al Mheiri's Qareeb.
Sayyed Hashish claimed the bonus for winning at least two rounds of the Emirates Sprint Series for the second-straight year following Colour Up's success in the Listed Jebel Ali Sprint. The 6YO Mehmas gelding won the second leg of the series, the Listed Garhoud Sprint at Meydan on 8th December, which put him in line for the bonus of AED 250,000 in addition to the prize money. Colour Up won the race under Pat Dobbs, beating Al Mheiri's Al Shibli.
The Wathba Stallions Cup 0-90 handicap sponsored by the HH Sheikh Mansoor bin Zayed Racing Festival was won by Ibrahim Al Hadhrami's Ramz Muscat, driven by Sam Hitchcott. The Thoroughbreds then kicked into action, and the first contest, the 1200m Al Shafar Investment Stakes, was won by Houb Al Wattan, trained by Rashed Bouresly and ridden by Omar Salas.
The Pat Cosgrave ridden My Honor, making his second career start, won the 1600m Emirates Airlines Cup, a winner-restricted run for 3YO. The training partnership of Simon and Ed Crisford collected their fifth success for the term. Homespin, ridden by Royston Ffrench and trained by Salem bin Ghadayer, won the 1600m Commercial Bank of Dubai 0-80 handicap, while Michael Costa-trained Makfoul won the concluding 1950m Sukoon Takaful Stakes 0-90 handicap in the colours of Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.