Hakeemat Muscat wins the G2 Liwa Oasis

Sunday’s racing on the Abu Dhabi turf was officially highlighted by the 1400m Group 2 Liwa Oasis and it delivered a nail biting conclusion worthy of any feature race with the gallant, heartbreakingly for connections, Rawaa denied in the final strides by the persistent challenge of Hakeemat Muscat.

The pair, having seem off the challenge of eventual third MH Rahal, basically duelled throughout the final 225m with Hakeemat Muscat finally able to stick her head in front in the closing stages with the 6-year-old mare answering every urging requested by Szczepan Mazur.

Saddled by Ibrahim Al Hadhrami for Muscat Stud For Pure Arabian Horses the homebred has now won four times, twice in the UAE at Abu Dhabi, adding this prize to the 2400m Group 3 Arabian Triple Crown she landed in April, 2019. She was, it appears, promptly retired.  

Mazur said: “The trainer has just told me this will be her final race, so that is the perfect farewell to racing. She is a very good mare who will, hopefully, be a good asset for breeding.

“She is not always the easiest to get to the front, but tonight she has really fought well for me and that is her biggest win, so as I said, the perfect swansong.”

The main support race, restricted to the 4-year-old Purebred Arabian Classic generation, was the 2200m Group 3 Arabian Triple Crown R2 which, on paper at least, looked competitive but, in reality, the vast majority among the capacity field of 14 may as well have stayed at home.

Riding in the lime green silks of Al Ajban Stables for trainer Abdallah Al Hammadi, ‘the flying Dutchman’ Adrie de Vries went straight to the front on Ottoman and they hardly sensed a rival. Seemingly allowed to set easy fractions, De Vries pressed the accelerator entering the relatively short straight, after which the race was basically over as a contest.

The striking steel grey colt was opening his turf account, at the fifth attempt and doubling his career tally having won a 1600m maiden at Al Ain by an unchallenged ten lengths on just his second racecourse appearance in November.

De Vries, completing a rapid double, said: “I have not ridden the horse before, but I have watched all his races back and I really thought this longer trip was going to suit him. It has!

“The trainer told me to be handy, but we broke well and I was able to get an easy lead, so I was always happy. When I asked him at the top of the straight he put that to bed quickly. The trip has really suited him, as we thought it would.”

The finale and only Thoroughbred contest, a 1600m handicap was contested by a capacity field of 16 with at least half of them threatening to win at some stage in the straight.

However, in a race that must have been initially contested at an overly generous pace, although early leader Bold Rex did maintain his effort to finish a close fifth, the finish was dominated by runners nearer last then first on the home turn.

De Vries, who was seeking a treble, endured some traffic issues on Madame Ellingtina, but managed to find a clear passage, the pair hitting the front with barely 75m remaining. However, they were caught and passed, ultimately decisively, in the final 25m by Antonio Fresu who was flying home aboard Ganbaru for Musabbeh Al Mheiri and Khalaf Rabah Al Shammari.

A 4-year-old gelded son of Dark Angel, Fresu’s mount was previously a maiden after seven starts, five in France for Godolphin and Andre Fabre, making it third time lucky here in style for his new connections. He has only ever raced on turf.