12 May 2024
Photo scoopdyga.com
Sunday, May 11, 2024, ParisLongchamp Racecourse (Paris) – At the end of a heated duel, the favourite of €100,000 The President of the UAE Cup – Coupe d’Europe des Chevaux Arabes (Gr1 PA), the 5-year-old mare Al Doha (Al Mourtajez), narrowly held off her stablemate from Thomas Fourcy's yard, Moshrif (Dahess), who had led her from the rear until the last straight. The third place was claimed by RB Kingmaker (Baseq Al Khalediah), finishing strongly for the Emirati stable of Helal Alalawi.
Bred by Al Shaqab Racing in Lot-et-Garonne but racing under the colours of HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa Al Thani, the mare returned after a three-month break. She last competed when she placed third in the $2.5 million 1m1/2 Amir Sword (Gr1 PA) in Qatar, the third leg of the Triple Crown. Previously, she had finished second in the 1m2f Qatar Arabian World Cup (Gr1 PA) at ParisLongchamp, defeated by the champion Al Gadheer, who also triumphed in Doha.
Nevertheless, this marked Al Doha's second Group 1 victory for purebred Arabians, having previously won the Doncaster Derby last August.
Al Doha is the seventh foal out of Topaze du Croate (Dormane), bred by the Boudet family in Aveyron. Although she never won a race in France, she secured a fourth-place finish in a Group 1 for pure Arabians over 1m2f at Saint-Cloud at three years old.
Al Doha is her dam's most accomplished offspring to date, more so after this latest victory. Her full sister, Al Basra, four years old, did not win in France and has been exported to Qatar.
WHAT THEY SAID
Thomas Fourcy (trainer of Al Doha, 1st, and Moshrif, 2nd):
"On paper, this isn’t a surprise. But she always takes some time to return to her best form. This is only her second victory in a Gr1 PA, even though she has already beaten very good horses. She truly deserved another Gr1 PA win. In Doha this winter, she performed well behind champions like Al Ghadeer and Abbes, who were on their home turf and on a fast track, which is not her preferred surface. Today, the track was less fast, and the competition was within her reach. I was only really concerned about my other trainee, Moshrif. All options are open for the rest of the season. I am pleased to bring another Gr1 win to the record for Sheikh Abdullah Bin Khalifa Al Thani’s mare."
Helal Al Alawi (trainer of RB Kingmaker, 3rd):
"He ran well. In the Dubai Kahayla Classic, he did not like the dirt. He needs to race to reach his peak form. We will discuss what comes next together. There are two options: either a break or training with Élisabeth Bernard."