Calvados Blues

While Rewilding took all the headlines from the mile and a half Dubai Sheema Classic on World Cup night at Meydan, it would have been a very interesting contest with Godolphin’s other runner Calvados Blues had that one had a clear passage in the straight. Rewilding won the race by three and a quarter lengths so it is slightly fanciful to suggest Calvados Blues would have won if he had had a clear run, but he was going every bit as well as the winner at the top of the straight and he got badly hampered twice.

He had got shuffled back after a couple of furlongs when he seemed to take a false step and found himself having to make ground to get back closer to the pace. Alongside Rewilding turning out of the back, he didn’t have much daylight ahead of him and tried to angle out between Rewilding and Redwood a furlong and a half from home, but that gap soon closed on him as the other Godolphin horse went forward on his outside so he was switched back inside to try to find a gap. He was impeded again as he tried to poke up between Laheeb and the weakening Rulership inside the final furlong, he lost all momentum and almost lost his footing. He was able to quicken again when pulled back the other side of Laheeb and closed rapidly on Redwood for second, narrowly failing to get up for that position, unluckily so.

It was impressive how he was able to quicken once in the clear in the last half-furlong to swiftly put nearly two lengths between himself and Laheeb. He clearly had a lot left to give and while the winner was comfortable at the line, he had only pulled clear in the last furlong having started his run alongside Calvados Blues, and Calvados Blues just has to go down as unlucky.

26th March 2011