Equinox leaves his rivals in the shade in Sheema masterclass to spark Japanese hopes of elusive Arc success

Meydan and the Dubai World Cup took centre stage this weekend and it was Equinox who took the plaudits with a sublime performance. Here are three things we learned this week

All roads lead to the Arc as Japan stakes global claim

World Cup night at Meydan turned into a Japanese showcase, with Equinox's Dubai Sheema Classic the highlight of the country's three winners.

This year’s carnival has been dominated by runners from the Far East, but the level of success on a hugely competitive card shows the strides the nation has taken in the international arena.

Derma Sotogake led home a 1-2-3-4 in the UAE Derby before victories in the Sheema Classic and the World Cup, the latter from Ushba Tesoro, who ran down the Simon and Ed Crisford-trained Algiers in dramatic fashion.

The performance of the night, however, came from Equinox in the Sheema Classic. Japan’s horse of the year in 2022 made all in devastating fashion, tanking into the straight and never coming out of third gear. Beating a field that included the Irish Derby winner and several multiple Group 1 winners showed he is a major talent and unsurprisingly he is the new favourite to give the country an elusive first Arc triumph.
Owen Goulding

Go North Racing Festival was a huge success

Following the Cheltenham Festival in the jump racing calendar is a thankless task, but the Go North Racing Festival produced a brilliant three-day event full of success stories.

The Racing Post-backed Go North Series Finals were engineered to boost field sizes in the north and provide valuable targets for local yards whose eyes were not set on Cheltenham. The opening day at Musselburgh on Friday provided just that, with each series final having double-figure fields and all seven races on the card won by a northern stable.

At Kelso on Saturday a well-hatched plan came off for Susan Corbett – who was celebrating her 67th birthday – and 7lb claimer Dillan Hurst, who admitted to thinking about giving up the sport, when Les's Legacy won the opening race on ITV4.

This sort of series needs to be championed as it offers enticing prize-money for smaller stables and owners and is the perfect showcase for the sport's lesser publicised talents.
Harry Wilson

A good claiming jockey is invaluable

While many eyes were drawn to punters' favourites Frankie Dettori and Ryan Moore, both successful on Dubai World Cup night at Meydan, it was the apprentice jockeys at Lingfield who made the biggest impression on Saturday.

Of the seven races on the card, six winners were ridden by a claimer, with three going to the rising star of the weighing room in Billy Loughnane, who took his tally to 33 for the year.

Connor Planas: apprentice took the eye with Lingfield doubleCredit: Mark Cranham (racingpost.com/photos)

Connor Planas made a fine start to his new partnership with George Boughey when recording a double, while Sean Kirrane judged the start so well when winning on Live In The Dream a stewards' inquiry was held to see if he had gained an unfair advantage from the stalls.

Loughnane is a steal for his 5lb claim and is the leading apprentice jockey on the all-weather this season, 25 wins clear of his nearest rival. He has shown composure beyond his 18 years and will no doubt will be at the top of trainers' lists for the foreseeable future.

Apprentice jockeys like these need more opportunities in better class races. Hopefully a lot more use will be made of them as the turf season unfolds as armed with a 7lb, 5lb or even 3lb claim, they can prove an invaluable asset.
Harry Wilson

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