Benbatl To Take On Winx

[Wandering Eyes]

By Daithi Harvey

Although Joseph O’Brien has ruled out a G1 Cox Plate bid for his G1 Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby winner Latrobe (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), Saeed Bin Suroor is planning to ensure Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}) doesn’t have things all her own way as she bids for a fourth straight win in the race. Bin Suroor is aiming Benbatl (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) at the ten furlong contest scheduled for Oct. 27 at Moonee Valley and has reported the colt to have recovered from a rough passage when fifth in last week’s G1 Juddmonte International at York. “Benbatl had two nasty cuts in his hind leg, it looks like he was struck into from behind,” Bin Suroor explained. “It’s not serious and he’s back in training, but he’s going into quarantine in a couple of weeks because he’s going to run in the Cox Plate. I think 10 furlongs is his trip. He was fifth in the Derby and has run well over a mile but he’s best over nine or 10 furlongs,” he added. Benbatl proved that point when winning the G1 Dubai Turf over nine furlongs at Meydan on Dubai World Cup night and again when scoring over ten furlongs in the G1 Grosser Dallmayr Preis – Bayerisches Zuchtrennen in Munich in July.

Bin Suroor also gave an update on G1 Dubai World Cup winner Thunder Snow (Ire) (Helmet {Aus}) who had his first start since that success when finishing in rear behind Roaring Lion (Kitten’s Joy) in the Juddmonte last week. “Thunder Snow lost two shoes, one in front and one behind. He’s OK and he’s going to go to America for the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont. That’s on the dirt over 10 furlongs and then he’ll go for the Breeders’ Cup Classic.”

 

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