Mahmood Al Zarooni disappointed after Opinion Poll’s second place in Gold Cup at Ascot
Opinion Poll could only secure the runner-up position behind his fellow Godolphin runner, Colour Vision, in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot on Thursday, June 21st. Frankie Dettori and Colour Vision survived a stewards' inquiry and as a result, Opinion
Poll did not find any joy.
Under Mickael Barzalona, the six-year-old broke very well, but failed to maintain the standards all the way through. The dashing horse succeeded in becoming the leader inside the final 150 yards, but since his advantage was so little, it was very difficult
for him to retain his lead.
Saeed Bin Suroor’s regained his supremacy inside the final 75 yards, giving his opponents no chance to trouble the judge. The 5-1 chance could not match Colour Vision’s speed in the final stages of the race and failed to grab the top rank.
Getting bumped twice also decreased Opinion Poll’s chances to a great extent and despite the fact that he tried his best, he fell short by half a length.
Al Zarooni said: "He ran very well, no excuses. They are two nice horses, it doesn't matter as we are one team. As for future plans we will see what Simon (Crisford, racing manager) and Sheikh Mohammed want to do."
Sheikh Mohammed, the founder of the Godolphin operation, expressed delight over notching up the top two positions in the Group 1 meeting. He stated after the race:
"Whatever happened, they are two very good horses that finished first and second and that's a good thing. You have to wait a year to prepare your horse to come here and even the second horse ran a great race."
Saddler's Rock also ran brilliantly, but it was almost impossible for him to trouble the leading pair. He ran well early on, but failed to add the finishing touch.
As a result, he missed the runner-up position only by a neck’s distance. John M Oxx was not reluctant to admit that his trainee was unable to tackle the conditions at Royal Ascot.
"It was a sprint for the last mile and he couldn't quicken on the soft ground,” he explained after the race.
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