Al Qareem

Al Qareem did well to battle back and get back up to beat Israr in the Group 3 Cumberland Lodge Stakes at Ascot on Saturday. Karl Burke’s horse sat in second place from early behind a fast pace that Claymore set. He picked up well to hit the front at the two-furlong marker, at which point he was challenged and passed by Israr, who had been ridden more patiently, and who looked set for victory when he hit the front, trading, as he did, at 1.02 in-running. But there was a lot to like about the manner in which Al Qareem battled back on the far side to get back up to win by three-parts of a length.

This was just Al Qareem’s second run since he was beaten in the Dubai Gold Cup at Meydan in March. Winner of a Group 2 race over a mile and seven furlongs at Longchamp on Arc weekend last year, he returned at Chester in September, and battled on well to get the better of the talented three-year-old filly Bluestocking over an extended 12 furlongs in a listed race on easy ground. This was a step up on that. He is obviously on good terms with himself, and, he will be of interest if he runs again now before the end of the season. He stays well and he goes well on easy ground.

Ascot, 7^th October 2023