Lord North finds Dubai Turf a winning fit

Lord North picked up in 2021 on Saturday at Meydan Racecourse where he left off in 2020 with an easy victory in the Group 1, $4 million Dubai Turf, his first start since a good fourth-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Turf.

At 1 1/2 miles, the BC Turf probably was farther than Lord North’s ideal trip, but at 1,800 meters, about 1 1/8 miles, the Dubai Turf was right in his wheelhouse.

Frankie Dettori held Lord North near the back of a 12-horse field, his mount rating perfectly while traveling very smoothly through this one-turn contest.

Dettori pulled out past the 600-meter mark, coming toward the end of the turn, following Al Suhail’s move, and as Al Suhail, who would finish last as the second choice, began struggling, Lord North hit his best stride. At the 300-meter mark, Lord North had run up alongside the leaders and he quickly disposed of them, going on to a three-length win and giving trainer John Gosden his first win in a race formerly known as the Dubai Duty Free.

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“I had plenty of horse. He stays really well, so I kicked with him earlier,” Dettori said.

Vin De Garde ran on well from mid-pack to finish third, one length in front of Felix. Lord Glitters, a divisional leader during the Dubai season, never factored and finished sixth. The winner paid $5.60 on the international tote and was timed in 1:46.46, the third-fastest clocking of the race’s history at Meydan.

Lord North, a 5-year-old gelded son of Dubawi and the Giant’s Causeway mare, Najoum, was bred and is owned by Godolphin. The horse was castrated early in his career owing to unruly behavior.

“He was a handful in the early days, so he got gelded,” Dettori said. “He’s much more focused now.”

Lord North was a big handicap winner in 2019 before coming forward during 2020, when he won the Group 1 Prince of Wales Stakes by nearly four lengths. Lord North was a 5-1 surprise in last year’s Prince of Wales. Dettori suggested the same race could be an early summer goal, and Lord North will not be sneaking up on anyone this season.