Kutub takes Singapore Gold Cup

Kutub's victory in the Singapore Gold Cup at Kranji on Saturday, his third straight in a Grade 1 race, may have earned him a place in the Hong Kong Vase against Melbourne Cup winner Ethereal.

Rated toward the rear by Frankie Dettori, Kutub cruised to the lead at the three-sixteenths pole and stayed on to defeat the Indian-bred Saddle Up by three lengths. Kutub ran the 1 3/8 miles on good ground in 2:15.10, equaling the track record.

Kutub's owner Godolphin will now contemplate a trip to Sha Tin for the 1 1/2-mile Hong Kong Vase on Dec. 16 for Kutub. There he would meet the New Zealand-bred and -trained filly Ethereal, the winner last Tuesday of the two-mile Melbourne Cup.

In Japan, the 5-year-old Sunday Silence mare To the Victory won the 1 3/8-mile Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup by a nose from Rosebud.