(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Mister Ginoux yesterday stormed to Qatar International Trophy race victory as French jockey Julien Auge celebrated a 'fantastic' triumph at Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (QREC).
Auge timed his burst to perfection close to the winning post as Al Shaqab Racing's 4-year-old gatecrashed trainer Julian Smart's party to win the feature race at QREC with a time of 1:44:68.
Smart, who had four entries in the 12-horse field, saw Al Anga finish second while his stablemate Aden - ridden by Richard Mullen - grabbed the third spot.
After winning the 1600m race by half a length, Auge said: "For me this was a fantastic win. I didn't get a great number at the gate but that was no problem."
Auge added: "We managed to get a very big finish and that's what we were looking for."
In another shock result, Makruma annihilated some of the best thoroughbreds in the country to win the Qatar International Cup in a runway performance at QREC.
Ridden by Piers Convertino, Makruma won the 1,600m race ahead of Janoub Nibras and Pearl Bridge as the Majid Safedeen-trained filly emerged on top with a memorable run.
Roman Legend, ridden by Frankie Dettori, finished in fourth spot but it was Convertino who had the biggest smile.
"It was an incredible run," Convertino said. "First of all I want to thank the trainer and the owner for believing in me. They worked very hard," he added. "Because of them I had a perfect race. I am very happy. I think we broke from the pack at the perfect time," Convertino said.
Trainer Safedeen said: "It was a very hard race and a very draining one at that. But the result doesn't surprise me. I gave orders to Piers to wait until the end. It was a perfect race for us." Earlier, veteran jockey Gerald Avranche made his experience count when rode Nomaas to victory in race seven ahead of Jelmud and Raghed.
Nomaas, trained by M Hussain, produced an incredible burst an energy with nearly 200m to go and finished the 1200m race with a time of 1:18:53.
"I am happy with this win. I have been living and riding in Qatar for a long time," Avranche said. "It is nice to be in this position, winning races," he added.
Shaolin, ridden by J P Guillambert, relied on a late surge to beat Leafcutter and Hi Holy to win race six.
Five-year-old Shaolin beat Leafcutter by a head's length and topped the 14-entry field with a time of 1:36:71.
Crafted scripted a runaway win in race five when the 4-year-old stormed an easy in ahead of Harry Bentley-ridden Peace Accord and Azma who had Marco Monteriso in the mount.
Ridden by Avranche and trained by I Al Malki, Crafted rarely looked in trouble as he galloped to a win in a time of 1:24:26, finishing with a flourish in sunny conditions.
In race four, Saakhen pipped River Goddess in a photo-finish but it was trainer Jassim Al Ghazali who still emerged a winner in the 1200m race.
Saaken, ridden by Guillambert, galloped with amazing recovery speed in the last 200m to edge River Goddess who had Bentley in the saddle. Saaken clocked a time of 1:12:12.
"I didn't know who won as my head was done. It was a really tight race," Guillambert said.
After a sluggish start to their campaign, the Al Ghazali-Bentley duo picked up pace in race three when the popular British jockey brought Qassy home in the 1600m race.
Five-year-old Qassy finished with a time of 1:46:38. After finishing ahead of Dhalyek Al Naif and Safwan, Bentley said: "It was a good run. The last time he ran a mile, he was just as good. I think we took off a the right time."
In the second race for fegentri lady riders of the weekend, jockey Josephine Chini produced a slick run when she guided Jassim Al Ghazali-trained Gojeri to a convincing win.
Gojeri, who clocked a time of 1:12.17, finished the 1200m race ahead of Sandbetweenourtoes and Morning Post ridding by Marion Dufrench. Sandbetweenourtoes was ridden by M Blumenauer. "It was a great performance. I enjoyed this ride," Chini said after the triumph.
Veteran jockey Gary Carter overcame a restless start by nailing the win in race one when he guided Beach Samba to a morale-boosting victory ahead of Silver Ranger and Power Play.
Beach Samba clocked a time of 1:24.36 and finished the 1200m race almost 2 lengths ahead of Silver Ranger ridden by Frenchman Gaetan Faucon.
"I don't know," Carter said when asked if he was planning to continue. "I might retire soon," he joked.
"He's a nice horse and runs the moment you put on the blinkers. There were a few horses kicking at the back before the start."
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