Mr Dinos wins Ascot Gold Cup

Mr Dinos ran down pacesetter Persian Punch at the half-mile pole and went on to record a handy six-length win in the Group 1, $420,000 Ascot Gold Cup Thursday.

The 3-1 second choice, Mr Dinos had signaled his readiness for the 2 1/2-mile Gold Cup with a 2 1/2-length victory over Pole Star in the Group 2 Henry II Stakes, a two-mile race at Sandown May 26. Pole Star stayed on for third Thursday, three-quarters of a length behind the 10-year-old sentimental favorite Persian Punch, who was running in the Gold Cup for the seventh time.

The winning time of 4:20.15 was 4.48 seconds off Royal Gait's course record.

Godolphin's 5-2 favorite Mamool got as close as third in midstretch but faded to fifth. The Aidan O'Brien-trained Black Sam Bellamy failed to stay and weakened to eighth. Alcazar saw his five-race winning streak, stretching back nearly five years, go up in smoke. This step up in class proved too much for the oft-injured gelding as he finished last of 12.

Kieren Fallon was aboard Mr Dinos, who is trained by Paul Cole. A 4-year-old colt by Irish Derby winner Desert King, Mr Dinos had won the Group 1 Prix Royal-Oak, or French St. Leger, last year. A return to Longchamp on Arc Day, Oct. 5, for the Group 1 Prix du Cadran at the same 2 1/2-mile distance as the Gold Cup is likely for Mr Dinos.

* Spanish Sun made the improbable leap from a seven-furlong maiden win at Kempton Park last September to victory in the Group 2 Ribblesdale Stakes, a $235,000 race for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/2 miles. Trained by Michael Stoute, Spanish Sun is another blossoming star owned by Khalid Abdullah. She got up late under jockey Richard Hughes. She went postward at 9-2 and defeated the 7-2 favorite Ocean Silk by a head, stopping the timer at 2:31.07.