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Dubai: Jalil, at a staggering $9.7 million and one of the most expensive yearling purchases the world has seen, is finally beginning to reveal his talent as he goes for the Dubai World Cup (G1).
"Finally" because normally when a thoroughbred changes hands for millions, before he reaches racing age, the buyer looks for a relatively quick return on the investment. That did not happen in this case.
However, the Godolphin team is a privileged one. They have the patience, and they can afford the time needed to develop horses who blossom at four and five years of age.
This colt seems to be just that type and he is also clearly a horse who prefers running on dirt, rather than turf - which is the first little surprise he sprung on his connections, since Jalil is a brother to the North American turf star After Market, a winner of four big races on the lawn in California last year.
Jalil also made his debut on turf, when he turned up for a one-mile maiden event at Newmarket, in England, in October 2006. All eyes were on this expensive colt of course, but perhaps it was a day when the superstitious fans came out better than those who studied form, pedigrees and looks.
It was Friday the 13th ... Jalil was a heavy favourite to win the race, which - yes, you guessed it - had 13 runners. What happened? Jalil lost. He finished only sixth, behind a horse called Sam Lord. Oh, in case you did not guess that, Sam Lord's saddle-cloth number was 13 ... and for every pound you bet on him to win you would collect £13!
So perhaps it was written in the stars that Jalil would lose that race. It was his only run as a juvenile. He did not do much better in England as a three-year-old though, when he only won a small maiden race at lowly Ripon racecourse.
His form at Nad Al Sheba has been so much better, and it has been improving with every run. Jalil made his first start of the year in a handicap over 1,800 metres on the dirt track in February, and he won the race quite comfortably by 3 lengths.
Two weeks later, he was stepped up to 2,000 metres, and he won again, this time by 2 lengths from the Brazilian import Gloria de Campeano, who was carrying 1kg (2lbs) more than Jalil.
They met again in the Al Maktoum Challenge Round III (G2) on Super Thursday, again over 2,000 metres on the dirt. This time, there were others who looked stronger on paper, not least contenders like the favourite Lucky Find, Kandidate and Latency. Jalil beat them all, and once more Gloria de Campeano filled second.
Frankie Dettori and Jalil came from the middle of the field, with a long, well-sustained finish. Jalil ran on gamely to win.
Progressive horse
Jalil is a progressive horse and it is quite likely that he will improve in the future. That said, taking on Curlin is a different ballgame and it would take some performance by the Godolphin runner to match strides with the North American champion in the Dubai World Cup (G1).
But there is an old saying in horseracing: "Never be afraid of one horse ..." If Curlin fails to shine, Jalil will be in with a shot and don't forget - there is a lot of money to be earned also for the horse who takes second.
-Geir Stabell is editor and handicapper of Globeform
/www.globeform.com
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