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Pleaseletmewin a double delight for Harley in Doha showpiece

Pleaseletmewin: won the Group 2 Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Cup in Qatar under Martin Harley
Pleaseletmewin: won the Group 2 Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Cup in Qatar under Martin Harley

Al Rayyan: Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Cup (local Group 2)

Gordon Lord Byron could not make his first start in Qatar a winning one.

Trapped wide and shuffled back on the home turn, he still briefly looked like winning up the short straight but there was not enough real-estate and he finished a gallant fourth.

It took the judge to award the race to the Martin Harley-ridden Pleaseletmewin, who took the £84,000 first prize from Vitally Important in a photo finish. It was a double on the card for Harley, who top and tailed the card, and a treble for Qatar's champion trainer Jassim Ghazali.

Pleaseletmewin was purchased for 450,000gns out of Ralph Beckett's yard in October 2016 and Harley was confident.

"I rode against him when he won a Group 3 at Newbury and back to a mile, I think that's his trip," he said afterwards. "They went strong up front and that played to my strengths because he stuck his head down all the way to the line."

On his successful trip to Qatar he added: "Group 2s are hard to win anywhere in the world so I'm delighted for me, but also the trainer. He put his neck on the line for me so it's nice to get the result."

On Gordon Lord Byron, Hogan said: "We're very happy. He got shuffled back a small bit but still came with a winning run. He ran a great race and we should have a lot of fun with him now for the season. It was only his 84th run."

There were wins on the undercard for the former Gay Kelleway-trained Black Orange, now in the care of former Newmarket-based Debbie Mountain, and Qatar's reigning four-time champion jockey Harry Bentley, who rode a double courtesy of Mosayter and Caid De L'Ardus.

Bentley, who is currently clear in this year's jockeys' championship, said: "I'm keeping busy. I commute between Dubai and here every week. I've had well over 200 rides and plenty of winners so it's been good."

On his Saturday rides, Qatar's number one added: "Tomorrow, Easter De Faust in the Arabian race over 1850m [HH The Emir's Silver Sword (Sponsored by Al Hazm)] is probably my most exciting ride. She's a filly that's come from France and she's a very exciting prospect for the future. She's won two from two this season so she's the one I'm most looking forward to, and The Blue Eye [in the HH The Emir's Trophy] as well."


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Stuart RileyDeputy news editor

Published on 23 February 2018inInternational

Last updated 18:01, 23 February 2018

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