Dubai: Lightning struck not once, not twice, but three times as a spate of horses broke down in the Dubai Gold Cup (G3) before Opinion Poll won the rescheduled 3,200-metre contest for Godolphin.
The race, originally the third on the card, was re-run after the ninth race after Fox Hunt sustained a broken leg and fell early in the race. He had to be euthanised, but his jockey Silvestre de Sousa luckily escaped injury. As fate would have it, Grand Vent and Mikhail Glinka also suffered falls in the second version.
Opinion Poll, ridden by Frankie Dettori, won by three-quarters of a length from the fast-closing Joshua Tree and Zanzamar, with only a short-head separating the two.
In the first running, Fox Hunt, who was positioned on the outside of the field by Silvestre de Sousa, appeared to snap his right front leg and veer sharply before throwing his jockey to the grass. The race continued, with Japan's Makani Bisty leading Mikhail Glinka, Irish Flame and race favourite Opinion Poll.
However, as soon as it became clear that Fox Hunt had suffered a serious injury and could not be moved off the track in time, the stewards stopped the race. De Sousa was unscathed in the incident and completed his book of rides for the evening.
"His leg just snapped and I clipped heels which brought me down," said the Brazilian, who was having his second Dubai World Cup for his new employers. "I feel fine, but it's a shame about Fox Hunt as he's a really nice horse with a lot of potential."
Dettori praised the Dubai Racing Club officials for their swift decision. "It would have been a disaster if they carried on with the race. Thank God the officials in the car called out that the race was being called off," he said.
Melvin Day, the Dubai Racing Club's Senior Handicapper, said: "A horse can break off anytime, but I have not seen such an incident in a flat race.
"It can happen in a steeplechase. Quite an unusual happening. Rules stipulate that the race would be void as it is incomplete. The stewards act like policemen and their main concern is to ensure the safety of the horses and riders."
— With additional inputs from Alaric Gomes, Senior Reporter, and Ashley Hammond, Staff Reporter