Kentucky Derby 2019 Radar: Royal Marine gets his dirt test
Group 1 winner Royal Marine, who triumphed in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagadere last fall in France, will soon indicate whether he’s trainer Saeed bin Suroor’s next UAE Derby (G2) hopeful.
According to Godolphin.com, the son of Raven’s Pass will switch to the dirt next Thursday for Meydan’s UAE 2000 Guineas Trial run at about a mile. A successful outcome could then lead to the Guineas itself, a race bin Suroor won in 2017 with eventual UAE Derby winner and Kentucky Derby runner Thunder Snow.
“If he performs well on it,” bin Suroor said of Royal Marine, “then we will press ahead with the Guineas here in Dubai, and after that, the Derby. But first, he must show us he is comfortable running on dirt.”
The Prix Jean-Luc Lagadere is a high-profile test for juveniles run on the undercard of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, won for a second year in a row last fall by Enable. Royal Marine took the race under a hand ride by Oisin Murphy one start after breaking his maiden in stakes company.
He became the first Grade or Group 1 winner sired by Raven’s Pass, whose ability to produce a 1 1/4-mile runner is unknown. But after Royal Marine’s last-out win, bin Suroor said, “He could be anything.”
The March 30 UAE Derby will carry a $2.5 million purse this year, making it the richest race of its kind. It is also a Kentucky Derby qualifier paying out points to the Top 4 finishers on a 100-40-20-10 scale — more than enough for the winner to secure a trip to Churchill Downs.
Among Royal Marine’s Guineas Trial rivals should be Superior, a Nov. 18 debut winner for the Phoenix Ladies Syndicate. That ownership group is also planning to send well-regarded Walking Thunder straight to the 2000 Guineas on Feb. 7.
From there, all roads lead to the 1 3/16-mile UAE Derby. Following Mendelssohn’s 20th-place finish in 2018, the best result by a UAE Derby winner in the Kentucky Derby remains Master of Hounds’ fifth in 2011 -- though, certainly bin Suroor-trained Thunder Snow could have equaled that had he not bucked shortly after the start two years ago.
Domestically, of course, Godolphin holds a strong hand led by Coliseum, the even-money morning line favorite for Saturday's Sham Stakes (G3) at Santa Anita Park. In recent weeks, Kentucky Wildcat (Dec. 1 at Aqueduct) and Cave Run (Dec. 15 at Tampa Bay Downs) broke their maidens in the famous blue colors as well, stamping themselves as ones to watch.