Team Godolphin's Huge Weekend Continues in Turf

It wasn't a completely straight-forward weekend for Team Godolphin, given the unfortunate events prior to Friday's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf which resulted in the scratching of Albahr (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). Stablemate Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) eased that disappointment with a convincing victory (for purse money only) in the Friday finale, and Yibir (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) capped a Saturday double for Sheikh Mohammed's operation with a fast-finishing victory in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Turf, giving jockey William Buick, trainer Charlie Appleby and Darley's Dubawi three winners over the course of the two-day meet. Broome (Ire) (Australia {GB}) ran a cracking race to be second ahead of Teona (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) in third.

Allowed to find his footing and taken back to sit near the tail of the field, Yibir switched off fairly in the early stages, as Tribhuvan (Ire) (Toronado {Ire}) and Acclimate (Acclamation) put the better part of eight lengths on their rivals as the field raced past the grandstand first time around. Tribhuvan was the clear leader racing under the wire and the pace was honest enough, as they turned up the backstretch following six furlongs in 1:12.41. Last and racing to the inside of Gufo (Declaration of War) with five furlongs to travel and with defending champion Tarnawa (Ire) (Shamardal) just ahead of him, Yibir began to lengthen his stride on the turn and raced in the slipstream of Tarnawa into the final 2 1/2 furlongs. Pulled out about five wide at the head of the lane as Broome came calling for the lead outside of Channel Maker (English Channel) about six lengths ahead of him, Yibir began gobbling up the ground and 'swept' past Broome in the final 20 yards for the victory. Teona ran on gamely for third, while Tarnawa was up and down in the stretch, finishing a disappointing 11th.

“To be honest with you, I thought he was doing too much,” admitted Buick. “But then once we turned into the back, he dropped the bit and he was in a good mile-and-a-half, steady rhythm and I was just hoping that he stayed there for the finish. Halfway around the home turn, I could see Broome had gone, but I was always confident of picking him up. He's been an amazing turn of foot and I couldn't pull him up after the line.”

Twice a winner from four starts as a juvenile, Yibir was third in the G3 Sandown Classic Trial Apr. 23 and fourth as the favorite in the Listed Dee S. around tight-turning Chester May 6 ahead of a runner-up effort in the Listed Cocked Hat S. at Goodwood 15 days later. Subsequently gelded in an attempt to extract more consistency, the lengthy chestnut was victorious in the G3 Bahrain Trophy in July and won the Aug. 18 G2 Great Voltigeur S. at York two starts later. Ineligible for the G1 St Leger S. as a geldingm Yibir shipped stateside for the Jockey Club Derby Invitational Sept. 18 instead at Belmont and came with a powerful sweeping run into the lane to overwhelm his peers by 2 1/2 lengths.

Appleby indicated Yibir could be a candidate for races like the G1 Longines Dubai Sheema Classic during the upcoming Dubai World Cup Carnival at Meydan Racecourse.

Pedigree Notes:

With the victory, Yibir becomes the 48th top-level scorer for Dubawi, now the sire of four Breeders' Cup winners following his productive weekend.

Yibir is a full-brother to connections' Wild Illusion (GB), winner of the G1 Prix de l'Opera and G1 Nassau S. and runner-up to Sistercharlie (Ire) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) as the favorite in the 2018 Filly & Mare Turf. Yibir's second dam was a German highweight, while the extended female family includes Royal Highness (Ger) (Monsun {Ger}), winner of the GI Beverly D. S. and dam od MGSW Free Port Lux (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}).

Rumh is the dam of Yibir's unraced 2-year-old full-brother Wild Crusade (GB) and a yearling colt by Breeders' Cup Turf runner-up Golden Horn (GB).

Saturday, Del Mar
LONGINES BREEDERS' CUP TURF-GI, $3,680,000, Del Mar, 11-6, 3yo/up, 1 1/2mT, 2:25.90 (NCR), fm.
1–YIBIR (GB), 122, g, 3, by Dubawi (Ire)
                1st Dam: Rumh (Ger) (SW-Eng), by Monsun (Ger)
                2nd Dam: Royal Dubai (Ger), by Dashing Blade (GB)
                3rd Dam: Reem Dubai (Ire), by Nashwan
1ST GRADE I WIN. O/B-Godolphin, LLC (GB); T-Charles
Appleby; J-William T. Buick. $2,080,000. Lifetime Record:
MGSW-Eng, 12-6-1-2, $2,895,580. *1/2 to Really Special (GB)
(Shamardal), SW-Eng, SP-UAE, $108,180; Full to Wild Illusion
(GB), G1SW-Eng, MG1SW-Fr, GISP-USA, $1,590,217. Werk
Nick Rating: A+++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross
pedigree.
2–Broome (Ire), 126, h, 5, Australia (GB)–Sweepstake (Ire),
by Acclamation (GB). (€120,000 RNA Ylg '17 GOFOR;
150,000gns Ylg '17 TATDEY). O-Masaaki Matsushima, Mrs.
John Magnier, Michael B. Tabor, & Derrick Smith; B-Epona
Bloodstock Ltd (IRE); T-Aidan P. O'Brien. $680,000.
3–Teona (Ire), 119, f, 3, Sea The Stars (Ire)–Ambivalent (Ire),
by Authorized (Ire). (280,000gns Ylg '19 TATOCT).
O/B-Rabbah Bloodstock LLC (IRE); T-Roger Varian. $360,000.
Margins: HF, 1HF, 1HF. Odds: 8.50, 9.50, 9.80.
Also Ran: Japan (GB), Channel Maker, Bolshoi Ballet (Ire), Sisfahan (Fr), Rockemperor (Ire), Walton Street (GB), Gufo, Tarnawa (Ire), Astronaut, Tribhuvan (Fr), Acclimate. Scratched: Domestic Spending (GB), Friar's Road, Mogul (GB), United.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.