Deborah Mountain-trained Seeyoubyme ran a determined race under Faleh Bughanaim to land the Ras Laffan Cup, yesterday’s feature on turf, even as Ibrahim al-Malki saddled a quartet of winners at the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club’s Al Rayyan Park yesterday.
Hassan Ali al-Abdulmalik-owned gelding kicked well out of the gates to take the lead early on in the 2000m run, and held on to his advantage throughout. Even as Alberto Sanna and his partner, al-Malki-schooled Pazeer, gave chase and even closed the gap on the home stretch, the grey son of Siyouni held on to win the Class 2 Thoroughbreds Conditions event by a length.
It was the Qatari jockey’s third win of the season so far, and the four-year-old’s fourth overall.
Al-Malki and Sanna did, however, win the six-furlong local Thoroughbred handicap sprint when Abdulatif Hussain al-Emadi’s Al Adheed beat the competition by four-and-a-half lengths.
The Qatari trainer’s own gelding, Zyzzyva, raced to his third victory this season out of four outings, when Ronan Thomas helmed the bay five-year-old to a cosy victory in the Thoroughbred handicap sprint with a little more than three lengths to spare.
Thomas was also astride Al Bida Racing’s Jabalaly in the penultimate race yesterday, a Class 3 Thoroughbred Handicap for horses rated 75-95. Having won over course-and-distance in October, followed up by a third place on dirt, Jabalaly landed the miler three-quarters-of-a-length in front of Jason Watson-ridden Sam Langford.
Al Thumama Racing’s X Force faced a tougher task than what the al-Malki-schooled gelding was used to so far in this season when Skip The Queue, runner-up by 17 lengths in the former’s season-opener in October, came threateningly close in the final few metres.
Francois Herholdt and his partner had to negotiate traffic sporadically through the race and took a slight advantage in the final furlong. They eventually held off Skip The Queue by less than a length at the post for three-year-old gelding’s fourth straight victory.
In the other Thoroughbred Handicap race, run over 2000m for horses rated 70-90, it was Hamad Ahmed al-Malki al-Jehani’s Suprematism that took a victory by head under JP Guillambert. It was the five-year-old horse’s first win in a year.
The two Purebred Arabian races — six-furlong sprints for four-year-old maidens and 2000m handicap for horses rated 95 and below — were won by Qatari jockeys.
In yesterday’s card-opener, it was Al Shaqab Racing’s Mkayns, trained by Alban de Mieulle, that claimed the maiden sprint under Ali Khalid al-Mosallam, with the apprentice rider landing his ninth victory of the season.
In the second race yesterday, Saleh Salem al-Marri rode his 11th winner of the season, which means the apprentice rider has equalled the win tally of all his previous seasons put together in just the first two months this term.
Salman Mohamed al-Emadi’s Djalnor, saddled by Mohamed Jassim Ghazali, won the 2000m handicap by two lengths and a quarter.


RESULTS
Race 1: PUREBRED ARABIAN MAIDEN PLATE (4 Year Olds) (Far Bend) (Distance: 1200m)
1. Mkayns (Ali Khalid al-Mosallam), 2. Valentina (Mickael Berto), 3. Givago Du Croate (Ronan Thomas), 4. Rammah (Alberto Sanna). Won by: 4 ¼, 1 ¼, 1 ½. Time: 1:20.57. Owner: Al Shaqab Racing. Trainer: Alban de Mieulle.
Race 2: PUREBRED ARABIAN HANDICAP (Far Bend) (95 & below) (Distance: 2000m)
1. Djalnor (Saleh Salem al-Marri), 2. Fahim (Michael Forest), 3. Bsheer (Faleh Bughanaim), 4. Dahra (Francois Herholdt). Won by: 2 ¼, 2 ½, Nk. Time: 2:15.89. Owner: Salman Mohamed al-Emadi. Trainer: Mohamed Jassim Ghazali.
Race 3: LOCAL THOROUGHBRED HANDICAP (Far Bend) (80 & below) (Distance: 1200m)
1. Al Adheed (Alberto Sanna), 2. Nayer Bu Thaila (Ivan Rossi), 3. Dream Boy (Ronan Thomas), 4. Majhool Al Zaeem (Tomas Lukasek). Won by: 4 ½, ½, No. Time: 1:14.70. Owner: Abdulatif Hussain al-Emadi. Trainer: Ibrahim al-Malki.
Race 4: THOROUGHBRED HANDICAP (Class 3) (Far Bend) (75-95) (Distance: 1200m)
1. Zyzzyva (Ronan Thomas), 2. Wayside Flower (JP Guillambert), 3. Noble Masterpiece (Jason Watson), 4. Cool Exhibit (Francois Herholdt). Won by: 3 ¼, 1, Nk. Time: 1:12.37. Owner: Ibrahim al-Malki. Trainer: Ibrahim al-Malki.
Race 5: THOROUGHBRED HANDICAP (Class 3) (Far Bend) (70-90) (Distance: 2000m)
1. Suprematism (JP Guillambert), 2. Indian Horseman (Saleh Salem al-Marri), 3. Star Of War (Mickael Berto), 4. Mount Fuji (Ivan Rossi). Won by: Hd, 4, Hd. Time: 2:05.00. Owner: Hamad Ahmed al-Malki al-Jehani. Trainer: Hamad Ahmed al-Malki al-Jehani.
Race 6: THOROUGHBRED PLATE (3 Year Olds) (Class 3) (Far Bend) (Distance: 1200m)
1. X Force (Francois Herholdt), 2. Skip The Queue (Saleh Salem al-Marri), 3. Clan Royale (JP Guillambert), 4. Wonderwork (Ivan Rossi). Won by: ¾, Hd, 1. Time: 1:13.18. Owner: Al Thumama Racing. Trainer: Ibrahim al-Malki.
Race 7: THOROUGHBRED HANDICAP (Class 3) (Far Bend) (75-95) (Distance: 1600m)
1. Jabalaly (Ronan Thomas), 2. Sam Langford (Jason Watson), 3. Random Decision (Tomas Lukasek), 4. Hajaj (Killian Leonard). Won by: ¾, ½, 1 ¼. Time: 1:34.13. Owner: Al Bida Racing. Trainer: Ibrahim al-Malki.
Race 8: RAS LAFFAN CUP (Far Bend) (THOROUGHBRED CONDITIONS (Class 2)) (Distance: 2000m)
1. Seeyoubyme (Faleh Bughanaim), 2. Pazeer (Alberto Sanna), 3. The Blue Eye (Jason Watson), 4. Alignement (Ronan Thomas). Won by: 1, 2, 3 ½. Time: 2:05.04. Owner: Hassan Ali al-Abdulmalik. Trainer: Deborah Mountain.