Good night for Godolphin as Jack Hobbs takes G1 glory

Godolphin enjoyed two winners on Dubai World Cup Night, with Jack Hobbs capturing the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic in great style and Thunder Snow gaining the G2 UAE Derby.

John Gosden, the trainer of Jack Hobbs, talked more about the horse. He said: “I trained his father Halling, who was a very talented horse but quite delicate. He did his best racing at five, so when Sheikh Mohammed bought into Jack Hobbs and talked about the Dubai Sheema Classic, I said he would run here as a five-year-old.

“I didn’t talk about not racing last year but he injured himself - he got a stress fracture of the pelvis - so we lost a season. When he came back, we could only go for the Champion Stakes and he was third to Almanzor and Found, which is the best form in Europe.

“William (Buick) got off after the Champion Stakes and said that the horse wasn’t focused. I tried him in cheek-pieces but he took no notice of them. These little semi-blinkers are not much but they just let him focus. He is very genuine but a bit of a dreamer.

“When horses have run here, it’s important to freshen them up through April and May. I would like to look at the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot (G2, 12f, in June) and the King George (G1, 12f) back there in July. They would be the obvious mid-summer races to go to. He will have a little holiday beforehand.

“I had supper with Sheikh Mohammed last night and he was very clear that he wants everyone to win from all around the world. He said that is doesn’t matter if he has a winner, he wants other people to win. He loves when America, Japan, France and now England win here. This is an international event, not a little home game.”

William Buick reflected: “John and I had spoken about the race beforehand and, with first-time blinkers, the one thing we didn’t was for Jack Hobbs to over-race. I tried to make it as smooth as possible but there were stages in the race when he did a little bit more than I wanted him to. He is a big, powerful horse and I suppose he wanted to use his stride.

“He was very impressive. He gave me a great feel and is probably getting better with age. Things have come thick and fast for him because he has so much ability.

“This is a hugely important night for us as a team. It’s Sheikh Mohammed’s spectacle and it is just great to perform with horses like Jack Hobbs. This is the biggest night in horseracing and winning this race for John again makes it extra special.”