Naval Crown will be competing at Newmarket on Saturday. Reem Mohammed / The National
Naval Crown will be competing at Newmarket on Saturday. Reem Mohammed / The National
Naval Crown will be competing at Newmarket on Saturday. Reem Mohammed / The National
Naval Crown will be competing at Newmarket on Saturday. Reem Mohammed / The National

Godolphin aim for glory at Newmarket and Kentucky Derby


Amith Passela
  • English
  • Arabic

Godolphin is bidding for two top thoroughbred prizes across two continents on Saturday.

The royal blues have a trio – Master Of The Seas, One Ruler and Naval Crown – aimed at the English 2000 Guineas at Newmarket while the undefeated Essential Quality heads the field in the 147th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.

Master Of The Seas is the choice of trainer Charlie Appleby’s first jockey William Buick. James Doyle is atop One Ruler, who is making his seasonal appearance, and Adam Kirby is booked on Naval Crown.

Master Of The Seas has run twice this season, finishing second to Naval Crown in the Listed Meydan Classic in February before overcoming traffic to land the Group 3 Craven Stakes at Newmarket on April 21.

It indeed is a tough call for Buick who may have considered race fitness in opting to ride Master Of The Seas ahead of the Group 1 Futurity runner up One Ruler who makes his seasonal reappearance.

Aidan O’Brien has also a trio in the race with Ryan Moore on Wembley and Frankie Dettori booked on Battleground heading the challenge.

Essential Quality has a perfect record and presents Godolphin’s best chance ever of winning the Kentucky Derby even though he tackles the 10-furlong distance for the first time.

The Brad Cox-trained Tapit colt under the 2021 Dubai World Cup winning jockey Luis Saez heads into the first leg of the US Triple Crown following a faultless preparation for the 10-furlong Classic.

“My only concern with Essential Quality is getting a good trip,” Cox told the Godolphin website.

“I think if he runs the race he has been running, he is going to be there. It is a 20-horse field, so you have to overcome certain things and have some racing luck. If he gets the racing luck and a clean trip, we should be in a great position.”

Essential Quality has won all his five starts, including two victories as a three-year-old that have displayed his versatility and courage.

He powered to a comprehensive win the Group 3 Southwest Stakes on a sloppy Oaklawn Park track at the end of February, and was forced to dig deep to overcome Highly Motivated by a neck in the Group 2 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland on April 3.

Those successes were achieved on the back of an outstanding Eclipse Award-winning two-year-old campaign that saw him take two Group 1 prizes at Keeneland – the Breeders’ Futurity and the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

“He hasn’t missed a beat in his career,” Cox added. “He has run five big races and his work schedule has been extremely steady, so he is a very solid horse in terms of soundness.

“If you watch him in the mornings, he is not over the top. He is happy and feeling good but he’s a classy horse who knows when to turn it on and off.

“I think it’s a good quality to have in terms of a Derby horse. It is going to be loud with a big crowd on Derby Day but we are hopeful and confident that he will be able to handle it.”

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Fines for littering

In Dubai:

Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro

Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle. 
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle

In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches 

Results
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The biog

Siblings: five brothers and one sister

Education: Bachelors in Political Science at the University of Minnesota

Interests: Swimming, tennis and the gym

Favourite place: UAE

Favourite packet food on the trip: pasta primavera

What he did to pass the time during the trip: listen to audio books

Bob Honey Who Just Do Stuff
By Sean Penn
Simon & Schuster

Day 3, Dubai Test: At a glance

Moment of the day Lahiru Gamage, the Sri Lanka pace bowler, has had to play a lot of cricket to earn a shot at the top level. The 29-year-old debutant first played a first-class game 11 years ago. His first Test wicket was one to savour, bowling Pakistan opener Shan Masood through the gate. It set the rot in motion for Pakistan’s batting.

Stat of the day – 73 Haris Sohail took 73 balls to hit a boundary. Which is a peculiar quirk, given the aggressive intent he showed from the off. Pakistan’s batsmen were implored to attack Rangana Herath after their implosion against his left-arm spin in Abu Dhabi. Haris did his best to oblige, smacking the second ball he faced for a huge straight six.

The verdict One year ago, when Pakistan played their first day-night Test at this ground, they held a 222-run lead over West Indies on first innings. The away side still pushed their hosts relatively close on the final night. With the opposite almost exactly the case this time around, Pakistan still have to hope they can salvage a win from somewhere.

The five types of long-term residential visas

Obed Suhail of ServiceMarket, an online home services marketplace, outlines the five types of long-term residential visas:

Investors:

A 10-year residency visa can be obtained by investors who invest Dh10 million, out of which 60 per cent should not be in real estate. It can be a public investment through a deposit or in a business. Those who invest Dh5 million or more in property are eligible for a five-year residency visa. The invested amount should be completely owned by the investors, not loaned, and retained for at least three years.

Entrepreneurs:

A five-year multiple entry visa is available to entrepreneurs with a previous project worth Dh0.5m or those with the approval of an accredited business incubator in the UAE.  

Specialists

Expats with specialised talents, including doctors, specialists, scientists, inventors, and creative individuals working in the field of culture and art are eligible for a 10-year visa, given that they have a valid employment contract in one of these fields in the country.

Outstanding students:

A five-year visa will be granted to outstanding students who have a grade of 95 per cent or higher in a secondary school, or those who graduate with a GPA of 3.75 from a university. 

Retirees:

Expats who are at least 55 years old can obtain a five-year retirement visa if they invest Dh2m in property, have savings of Dh1m or more, or have a monthly income of at least Dh20,000.