North America rebounds to take Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1

North America ended his 6-year-old campaign with a dismal failure in last year’s Dubai World Cup but started his 7-year-old season Thursday night looking like the 2019 World Cup is a reasonable goal.

North America relishes galloping along on the lead and lost all chance when he missed the break in last year’s World Cup. On Thursday, his start was fine, and within a few strides, jockey Richard Mullen had North America running like he prefers, out front and cruising along in the clear.

North America made the most of it. Increasing his advantage around the turn, he powered into Meydan’s long homestretch and won Round 1 of the Al Maktoum Challenge by nine lengths, galloping a solid field into submission. Taking down this Group 2 race worth $350,000 marked a success in its own right, but equally important was seeing North America return from his long break at least as good as he’d been a year ago.

“Step 1 is complete, anyway,” Mullen said. “Not many horses put the shivers in me, give me goosebumps. That one just did.”

North America probably better suits longer races than Thursday’s but still sizzled the one-turn 1,600 meters in 1:35.88. The Meydan course record is 1:35.21, set by One Man Band in 2016.

“He could have set a track record today, but no one was there to challenge him,” said Satish Seemar, who trains North American for Ramzan Kadyrov, head of the Chechen Republic.

Kimbear finished a distant second, 1 3/4 lengths in front of Muntazah. Gold Town, making his first start since the UAE Derby last March 31, was a wide fourth as the 8-5 favorite on the North American tote board. North America paid $16.20 to win – a gift in retrospect.

North America, by Dubawi and out of Northern Mischief, by Yankee Victor, took right to the Meydan dirt track, winning four in a row over it in 2016 and 2017. He was third in Round 1 of the Al Maktoum Challenge a year ago and won Round 2, which Seemar said will be his immediate goal again this winter. That race comes up Feb. 7.

The Meydan dirt favored front-runners and produced nothing but blowout winners Thursday, yet even accounting for the particularities of the surface, North America ran impressively.

“He is a horse that’s got a lot of natural pace,” said Mullen. “He gets in a really comfortable rhythm, and he’s got such a huge stride.”

Enthused as he was in the glow of victory, Mullen couldn’t help looking back in time.

“I just wish he’d have broke like that World Cup Night,” he said.

Walking Thunder still perfect

Walking Thunder ran away from 12 rivals and stormed to a nine-length score in the UAE 2000 Guineas Trial earlier on the Meydan card.

Walking Thunder broke from post 13 under jockey Connor Beasley but quickly got over to establish decent position stalking runaway leader Power Link. Walking Thunder came up to challenge the front-runner before hitting the top of the stretch, passed him with no discernible effort, and ran alone through the stretch. He stopped the timer in 1:38.93 for the 1,600 meters on a fast dirt track.

Manguzi finished second, well clear of third-place Al Seel’s Legacy. The favored Royal Marine, a Group 1 winner at age 2 trying dirt for the first time, checked in a one-paced fourth.

Walking Thunder is an American-bred by Violence and out of Street Show, by Street Boss, who was purchased at a 2018 sale of 2-year-olds in training for $42,000. He debuted in November on the Meydan dirt track and now has three open-lengths wins over the surface from three career starts.

Ahmad bin Harmash trains Walking Thunder and scored a second flashy win on the card when New Trails, also under Beasley, won a $175,000 handicap race over 1,900 meters on dirt by more than 10 lengths. New Trails is by Medaglia d’Oro and out of Isaqueena, making him a brother to multiple graded stakes winner Tizaqueena. Bin Harmash said New Trails would be pointed for the Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 next month.