Diamond Stripes wins Godolphin Mile

Dubai: The Richard Dutrow Jr-trained Diamond Stripes staved off a spirited run by Saeed Bin Surour's Elusive Warning to give the raiding Americans a win in the $1 million (Dh3.75 million) Godolphin Mile.

It was a winning debut for 2006 Kentucky Derby-winning jockey Edgar Prado, who was superb on the five-year-old son of Notebook in the dirt race.

Though Diamond Stripes made no mistake when he unleashed a terrific pace on the home stretch, Elusive Warning's jockey Kerrin McEvoy may have been a bit unlucky as he said his horse got a check early in the race.

It was supposed to be a good chance for Godolphin to get back to winning ways in a race that they have dominated, winning seven times in 12 runnings, though not in the last three editions. With Elusive Warning and Blackat Blackitten - under Frankie Dettori - on a two-pronged attack, the only danger was Diamond Stripes and it ran a cracker of a race to win by one-and-a-quarter lengths from McEvoy's mount.

Diamond Stripes' joint owner Abbas Masri could not conceal his happiness. "I'm so excited right now, I can't describe it. The horse just ran huge today. My heart just dropped to my knees when I saw him coming down the stretch."

Prado, who won the 2006 Kentucky Derby on Barbaro, said: "He fought hard all the way and I was really proud of him."

Assistant trainer Michelle Nevin said: "He tends to kind of want to wait on other horses, so Edgar did a great job of keeping him moving. He loves this track and I think the mile is his best distance."

McEvoy, who did try to get his horse into the battle, said: "He got to the front at 150 metres but then levelled out. I tried hard and did get a check shortly after the start which may have cost him the race."

Don Renato, a Conditions winner in January in Saudi Arabia, could not find a gap to break and finished third.

Moving very well

Jockey Wigberto Ramos said: "My horse broke good, but then he was a little too far back. When I started asking him he started moving very well. Then in the stretch I got into traffic so I started looking for my run but I never had a clean run. I had a lot of horse."

Zakocity finished fourth and also seemed to be caught up in the congestion.

Erwan Charpy's Rosberg hit the home stretch first before fading away to fifth place. Jockey Tadhg O'Shea said: "We travelled great and I thought we were going to get it early in the straight but he was just hauled in and ran out of gas."

Blackat Blackitten finished sixth and Dettori said the draw made the difference. "I knew I was on the wrong one as soon as they made the draw. He is not the same horse when he is drawn down the inner," he said.