The third meeting of the 2019 Dubai World Cup Carnival takes place today, please find below the Week 3 Meydan Overview and bet selections written by Racing TV’s Angus McNae.
Also attached is the race cards for the third race meeting of the Carnival.
Meydan Overview & Selections – Week 3:
We saw a monster performance from a proper dirt horse last week. In Round 1 of the Maktoum Challenge, North America bullied his rivals into tame submission and in so doing propelled himself into the Dubai World Cup picture. His timefigure was as good as the one posted by Thunder Snow in winning the Dubai World Cup and it equalled his performance in Round three of the Maktoum Challenge last season. He deserves to be to the fore of the Dubai World Cup market but he needs to prove that he can run as fast when things don’t go his way when he is taken on for the lead or when he is faced with Kickback or a wide trip. However as we stand he has put up the best performance at this year’s Carnival so far.
Three selections this week and hopefully you followed me in with Walking Thunder last week.
10:05am (ET) Meydan: Ispolini
I tipped this horse two weeks ago here at Meydan and am going in again. He shaped really well in second place then in a slowly run race (110.1% finishing speed percentage) won by Bin Battuta. Essentially he was out sprinted late on but he had travelled like the likeliest winner for much of the race. He steps up in trip here which will suit him and he should be hard to beat off his unchanged mark of 105. He reminds me of Walton Street who thrived as a stayer last year and he can emulate that horse here.
11:15am (ET) Meydan: Asoof
This is a weak renewal of the Balanchine and a case can be made for a few of these, in particular Poetic Charm, but I think Asoof is a decent play. We should look out for a Christophe Soumillon masterpiece here on a horse who may well be able to dominate this race from the front. She has shown herself to be useful already in the UK winning three times last season and she will never get a better chance to win a Group 2 race in her career. The basis of any bet on her has to be based on her dominating this race from the front and with the rail out on the turf track being in charge, on the rail will be a distinct advantage.
11:50 (ET) Meydan: Celestial Spheres
Godolphin have six runners in this and the best of them is tough to decipher. Nonetheless I believe Celestial Spheres is well treated off a mark of 97. He has not been seen since May of last year when he was thoroughly progressive. In fact he probably should have won at Newmarket when we last saw him. He is a strong traveller with a decent turn of foot and looks to be the best of Charlie Appleby’s three runners here with James Doyle on board.
