Dubai: Where do I start, such was the drama and excitement of the whole day.

Throughout the night before Dubai was battered by thunder, lightening, winds and rain which were to continue through the morning finally abating around 9.30am to be replaced with intermittent showers reminiscent of the UK and strong gusting winds.

Not what was on the order for the showcase race night of the year.

The dirt track which had been “sealed” the day before resembled a duck’s nirvana and the turf a soggy green lawn.

All of us at Meydan from early morning were inwardly praying in vain for warm sun.

The ground staff performed an amazing feat in removing most of the surplus water and nature did the rest resulting in safe racing conditions for the horses though the turf track remained a little soft.

Interestingly this change of conditions on the dirt immediately flagged up a huge change.

All season speed has held making it nearly impossible for a closer to be affective at all, but the dirt played to the strengths of horses coming from off the pace — closers, including those who did set out with the intention of being in that position — Arrogate!

First blood in the Godolphin Mile went to our champion trainer Doug Watson and jockey Pat Dobbs with Second Summer — another American import for the American trainer whose last win came in a Grade 2 at Santa Anita in November 2016. Sharp Azteca who I had nominated as my choice from his imposing presence and consistent morning work went for home too far out and was collared by the winner and German raider Ross. Trainer Jorge Navarro was less than pleased with his jockey Edgard Zayas “You have to be smarter than that, I knew we were in trouble when he moved early”.

The Arabian Group 1 Kahayla Classic was ultra competitive on paper but ground conditions changed the perspective with some of the horses not really liking the fast track or the kickback created by all the rain water. One who didn’t seem to mind it was the superb winner Reda (QA) trained by maestro Julian Smart and ridden by Qatar racing hero Harry Bentley. He came with a storming run from behind sluicing through the kickback to storm clear. Bentley said “he’s only ran on sand once and won, he’s matured and come of age and I had so much horse under me”.

The Dubai Turf gave us our first chance to see how soft or not the track would be. It certainly played to the strengths of easy ground runners with the first three spots filled by exactly those. French man Alain De Royer Dupre A trainer Vazirabad winning for the second consecutively year. Christophe Soumillon explained”he was moving around badly in the gates so I gave him time”. His long sustained run down the straight saw him a neck winner from the absolutely gorgeous specimen that is Beautiful Romance -Saed Bin Suroor.

Royer Dupre said his targets would likely Cup races at Ascot and Goodwood this season.

As predicted by many Thunder Snow won the UAE Derby, though only narrowly after running very immaturely for Soumillon, looking at the big screen and switching leads a few times but persevering to catch the Japanese Epicharis by a nose. Thunder Snow’s goal is a Derby, either in England, Ireland, France or maybe Kentucky where he has been nominated for the first Saturday in May. Saeed Bin Surour has now won the UAE Derby no less than 8 times!

The Turf Al Quoz Sprint was always going to be a lottery with many runners needing fast dry ground but the French trained winner had winning form on soft ground and The Right Man prevailed by a nostril over American Long On Value. Didier Guillemin- trainer says he goes to Hong Kong next with Royal Ascot also on the agenda.

For 22 years Gulf News have sponsored the Golden Shaheen and its never fails to thrill with eventual winner Mind Your Biscuits coming from the car park in Gate 14 and wide into the straight but this great striding horse gave Joel Rosario every confidence as he stormed clear to give rookie trainer Chad Summers his very first winner — he took out his licence a month ago for this horse.

The Dubai Turf went to the Japanese Vivlos with again many of the contenders suffering from the drastic change in underfoot conditions. All turf horses come to Dubai for fast ground.

The Dubai Sheema Classic was exeptionaly high on quality with Breeders Cup Victor Highland Reel and last years winner Postponed opposing each other. But the spoiler in the party was always likely to be John Gosden trained Jack Hobbs, whose career hasn’t followed an easy path with injury keeping him at home for periods of time.

He is an impressive looking big black stallion and equipped with blinkers for the first time in his life which his jockey William Buick felt were “essential” and Gosden said would help the “bit of a dreamer” to concentrate and focus. Well if Jack Hobbs focused Buick was in degree exam mode such was his concentration and determination for this race to go right and exploit the first time blinkers …. to the max. He tracked front running Highland Reel every step he took, quietly hiding behind his backside most of the trip and when every other jockey was urging for home with whips flying Buick still sat patiently knowing only precise timing of pressing the Go button would win him the spoils, and win he did as pushed the turbo button and he surged clear in decisive fashion.

Buick was unusually animated afterwards and rightly so for this was a mature intelligent and masterful ride of which he can be very proud. For me the ride of the night on a horse who whilst being classy isn’t always helpful.

The climax of the night was just that, with all the characters reading and acting out the script to perfection, well almost. Arrogate, the Bob Baffert potential superstar fluffed his lines at the gate, assisted just after by Keen Ice and Furia Cruzada appearing to take his ground causing Mike Smith to snatch him up sharply to avoid clipping heels. This near miss left the favourite trailing the field by miles, 15 lengths or so. But in one of the best jocks America has ever seen he had the perfect partner, Mike used to ride the great heroine Zenyatta who loved to be off the pace early and then run them all down. So in clicked plan Z, sit out the back and wait and wait, in fact Mike said “I geared him down because I didn’t want to hit the front at the quarter pole and then tire after making a big mid race move”! WOW imagine that, we were all shouting him on and he “geared down” — incredible from this great rider on a great horse. Baffert said his “heart surgeon was on red alert”. Such was the tension as his beautiful horse went from an impossible, hopeless position to a promising one.

Baffert told his wife Jill “if he wins this race it’s the greatest performance I’ve ever seen, I felt like I was a part in a movie like Seabiscuit or something. I could here the gasps from the crowd when he was so far back, it was incredible. The greatest horse I’ve ever seen since Secretariat.”

The story ended well and next year we will see another chapter written. But it will be hard pushed to rival this one. Congratulations to the cast of this momentous occasion especially all the victors and the vanquished. We’ll meet again — some sunny day.

— The author is a former trainer from the UK and the mother of leading international jockeys James and Sophie Doyle.