Dubai: A tidy, professional performance carried James Cummings-trained Gaulois to victory in $150,000 Listed Rowley Mile (1600m) at Hawkesbury, NSW, giving him his second Stakes success on Thursday. A winner in the same grade three runs earlier at Rosehill, Gaulois took up a perfect position from the start and raced in fourth place, one-off the fence, until jockey Tim Clark called on him at the 400m.
The five-year-old joined the lead soon after straightening and quickly put the race away in the next 100m, going to the line untouched to score by a half-length from Supernova.
Gaulois is a member of the final southern-hemisphere crop of Darley’s prolific stallion Street Cry.
Clark, who has ridden 14 winners in the past two weeks, made the most of a good draw in barrier three, producing Gaulois at the top of the straight and letting the Godolphin five-year-old do the rest.
“I just had a perfect run from a nice barrier,” Clark said.
“The tempo was okay but he strode into it with plenty of purpose and put them away in good style.
“Obviously he has returned to racing in really good order this preparation and he hasn’t really put a bad run in.
“Credit to James (Cummings) and his team.”
Gaulois claimed a maiden stakes win in the Listed Civic Stakes in June and boosted his record further with Thursday’s Rowley Mile win.
“It’s nice to be able to pull off a couple of stakes races over winter,” Godolphin stable representative Darren Beadman said.
“He is a good horse to have in the yard. He’s great for the team.”
Thursday’s win was his sixth from 27 starts that have also produced a further 13 placings.
Meanwhile, Red Galileo aims for another strong staying performance when he lines up Europe’s most valuable heritage handicap, the £1-million Ebor, over 14 furlongs at York, UK, on Saturday.
The son of Dubawi produced a string of good turf efforts at this year’s Dubai World Cup Carnival at Meydan, UAE, placing in three handicaps and filling the runner-up spot in the G3 Nad Al Sheba Trophy over a mile and three-quarters.
Red Galileo stayed on gamely to win a 14-furlong handicap at Newmarket in June and returns to turf after coming home a close eighth on Tapeta in another heritage handicap, the Northumberland Plate, over an extended two miles at Newcastle later the same month.
Cieren Fallon comes in for the ride on the Saeed bin Suroor-trained eight-year-old, who takes on 21 rivals headed by prolific winner King’s Advice.