Blue Point and Pinatubo honoured at Cartier Racing Awards

Brilliant sprinter Blue Point and outstanding two-year-old Pinatubo received accolades at the Cartier Racing Awards in London, UK, on the evening of Tuesday, 12 November.

Both sons of Shamardal were unbeaten during 2019 for trainer Charlie Appleby, with Blue Point picking up the Cartier Sprinter award following five exceptional victories.

Blue Point started his year with three wins at Meydan, UAE, including a scintillating display the G1 Al Quoz Sprint on Dubai World Cup Night in March. He went on to become only the second horse in 99 years to complete the big sprint double at Royal Ascot with G1 successes in the King’s Stand Stakes and Diamond Jubilee Stakes.

Pinatubo received the Cartier Two-Year-Old Colt award having produced the highest-rated juvenile performance in Europe for 25 years when storming to a nine-length verdict in the G1 Vincent O’Brien National Stakes.

In a campaign that yielded six wins, Pinatubo also broke the two-year-old course record at Royal Ascot with an impressive victory in the Listed Chesham Stakes, took the G2 Vintage Stakes at Goodwood by five lengths and bravely won the G1 Darley Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket.

Charlie Appleby said: “We are thrilled to see Blue Point and Pinatubo honoured and these awards are testament to the hard work of everyone at Godolphin.

“Pinatubo has a profile that gets you excited with every race. At the start of his career at Wolverhampton, who would have known that he would end up winning two G1 races and be the highest-rated two-year-old in many years?

“He is a homebred, which is very important to everyone at Godolphin, and I was delighted that Sheikh Mohammed was present when he won the Dewhurst Stakes, when the horse showed great determination and guts. I couldn’t have been happier with the way the season finished for him.

“Decisions will be made over the coming week or so regarding whether he spends the next few months in Dubai or Newmarket but he is certainly an exciting horse to have over the winter.

“Blue Point was a tremendous horse for Godolphin and a sprinter who had immense talent. It was very special to see him win the King’s Stand Stakes for a second time earlier this year and, for him to back it up with victory in the Diamond Jubilee, was testament to the horse’s constitution and the team at home.

“I am delighted that he was crowned Cartier Champion Sprinter and hope he proves just as successful at stud.”