Rebel’s Romance repeats Trophy triumph in Qatar

Rebel’s Romance shone once again when defending his title in the rescheduled and relocated H H The Amir Trophy.

The Group Three was won by the seven-year-old last season, after which he went from strength to strength when collecting a string of further successes all over the world.

His season ended with a Breeders’ Cup Turf title at Del Mar in November and following a break, he returned to Qatar to take aim at the Amir Trophy again.

The race was due to be held at Doha on Saturday, but the meeting was called off after two horses came down in the first race and the track was deemed unsafe.

The card was moved to Al Uqda and the remainder of the races were scheduled for Sunday, with the main event the Amir Trophy and its prize fund of over £1million to the winner.

Rebel’s Romance was ridden by William Buick for Charlie Appleby and owners Godolphin, and ran a characteristically solid race to come home a length ahead of Andrew Balding’s The Foxes as fellow British contenders King’s Gambit finished fourth and Alflaila came home fifth.

Charlie Appleby told www.godolphin.com: “We are very thankful to everyone at the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club for getting the races run. It has been a challenging weekend, and they have done a fantastic job in a very short space of time.

“Rebel’s Romance is the ultimate warhorse, who doesn’t know how to lie down. He has gone out there with his heart on his sleeve and put up another great performance. William knows the horse inside out and has ridden him with a lot of confidence again.

“I am delighted for the whole team and especially His Highness Sheikh Mohammed, who continually supports us in letting us make the decisions that we feel are right. Thankfully, he is reaping the rewards and, when you have a horse like Rebel’s Romance, it makes the job a lot easier.

“We will ship Rebel’s Romance back to Newmarket and plot the same route that we took last year, giving him a little break in preparation for the Dubai Sheema Classic. It’s one race at a time with him these days, and we will enjoy every moment.”

The same trio of owner, trainer and jockey also enjoyed success on the card with Al Qudra, who landed the Al Rayyan Mile, although the victory was marred by a fatal injury to their second runner, Age Of Gold.

Appleby added: “Al Qudra improved for his first run of the season at Meydan and we came to Qatar with confidence. He is a tough little horse and we could look at something like the Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot, although we will get him back home and give him a well-deserved rest before making plans.

“Unfortunately, Age Of Gold sustained a fatal injury in the race and my thoughts go to everyone involved with the horse.”

The Dukhan Sprint was the other highlight on the card, with victory claimed by the Tom Clover-trained Rogue Lightning, with fellow British raiders Washington Heights and Quinault filling the places.