Global Weekly Review - 31.08.15

The well-regarded Exosphere made an eye-catching return to the racecourse with a brilliant win in Saturday's G2 Run To The Rose at Rosehill Gardens in Sydney, raising hopes for a successful Spring Carnival.

Trainer John O'Shea was suitably impressed and declared the Godolphin three-year-old on target for a crack at the Golden Rose on September 12.

"Weighing in at 600 kilos, he is the heaviest horse we have in the stable," the trainer reported.

Jockey Sam Clipperton, deputising for suspended Godolphin jockey James McDonald, said: "He is a very decent horse in the making."

Coming with a well-timed run, he proved too strong for highly-rated Press Statement and won by a length and a quarter, with one length back to Godolphin stablemate Holler, a creditable third.

O'Shea and Clipperton combined for a Godolphin double on the Rosehill card, also landing the Listed Premier's Cup with Magic Hurricane, who got up on the line to win by a nose.

Meanwhile, at Caulfield in Melbourne, the Chris Waller-trained Boban (by Darley stallion Bernadini) finished powerfully along the inside rail to snatch victory in a blanket finish to the G1 Memsie Stakes.

In the UK, Godolphin also had a double at Windsor, with the three-year-old Racing History galloping home strongly to win the G3 Winter Hill Stakes and Beautiful Romance showing a return to form in the August Stakes.

The Saeed bin Suroor-trained Racing History, a brother to former top Godolphin miler Farhh, was registering an eighth victory for the 'royal blues' in the Winter Hill and will now be aimed at the Prix Dollar at Longchamp on October 3. He appreciates some cut in the ground.

Wadi Al Hattawi is now a possible contender for the G1 Emirates Melbourne Cup in November following a comfortable win at Newmarket on Saturday. His trainer, Saeed bin Suroor said: "He could definitely be a horse for Australia, and I've got two or three others but I need to see more from them".

At the Curragh in Ireland on Sunday, Godolphin's Al Qahwa was well held in third by the Jim Bolger-trained Smash Williams in the G3 Round Tower Stakes, while Godolphin stalwart Portage finished runner-up to Hint Of A Tint in the Irish Cambridgeshire.

One other performance of note at the weekend was the convincing win of the Clive Cox-trained Kodi Bear in the Celebration Mile at Goodwood. He looks set to build further on his impressive record before the end of the season.