Al Hudaiba won the Group 2 Boodles Superlative Stakes on the bob from hot-favourite Abraham Lincoln at Newmarket.
It was a seventh Superlative for trainer Charlie Appleby since 2016 and his horse did it despite jinking in the closing stages as he wore down Aidan O'Brien's 8/13 favourite.
Abraham Lincoln himself hung across the track when he looked in control of the contest but that allowed Al Hudaiba (5/2) to get up on the inside under William Buick.
The winning son of Dark Angel displayed a kink in his character when unseating Tom Marquand at Yarmouth and he looked far from straightforward as the head on shot showed him jinking through the gap on the rail.
It was a terrific finish despite the greenness displayed by the front pair and Al Hudaiba got his nose down on the line where it mattered to deny Ballydoyle.
Paddy Power and Sky Bet cut the winner to 16/1 from 25s for the 2000 Guineas next May.
Unlimited Replays
of all UK and Irish races with our Race Replays
Discover Sporting Life Plus Benefits
National Stakes target for winner
Appleby said: “He has got a lot of talent. The first half of the race we were happy where we were, but at the three pole Will just thought how far is this fell going to do it, but then all of a sudden he said starts shifting underneath you. He is just a job to stay on, let alone to gallop out. Staying on is the hardest part.
"I was confident when it was getting as close as that, and with the luck that I’ve had over the last few weeks. I was sort of confident once he started to get his head down and rally again that he would get there as he has got a lot of ability as we have seen it at home. He does this at home so full credit to the lads at home to stay on him.
“Billy had ridden him a few times at home before his last start and he put some shapes in.
“Whether we just need to put something around his head to make him concentrate a little bit harder. He is one of those horses that finds life very easy because he has that engine there. If he is going to start stepping up into bigger leagues he is going to have to concentrate that bit harder.
"I think the ground would potentially suit him (at the Curragh for the National Stakes). That is one thing Will did say was that he was feeling the ground out there. He is a Dark Angel and we generally know they like a little bit of juice in the ground. I would imagine as we stand at the moment the National Stakes will be his most likely target.
“He has got all the ability in the world, but he has got that tendency to go left and right a little bit. He has got a different profile to what we have got at home. He is a Dark Angel and we have got a few by Dubawi to come through. I feel they are a nice bunch of two year olds that we have got, and I’ve felt that from the spring. On pedigrees they are bred to be nice, but as individuals they are stacking up well. Physically they have done well of late.
“Of course at the moment he is the front runner as that is why he is here. Over the coming weeks we have a few maidens to break and see where we are with them.
“We can all think we have got nice horses at home, and they can all go and win their maiden, but what this horse has gone and done is do it at stakes level and that is a big plus.
“He has got as good an engine as the likes of Native Trail and Master Of The Seas. We would love to see him do it a bit more straightforward.”
O’Brien said of the runner-up: “He ran a lovely race, but he was just very green when he got there. He did it the first day. He got there and pulled up as well. We will just have to get there later with him.”
More from Sporting Life
- Free bets
- Racecards
- Fast results
- Full results and free video replays
- Horse racing news
- Horse racing tips
- Horse racing features
- Download our free iOS and Android app
- Football and other sports tips
- Podcasts and video content
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org
