ALKUMAIT AN EXCITING WINNER OF THE GROUP 2 DUBAI DUTY FREE MILL REEF STAKES

Caption: Alkumait wins the Group 2 Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef Stakes

Alkumait took the Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef Stakes to set a new course record for the race (1.09.70) and a first time win in the Group 2 event for trainer, Marcus Tregoning. The 8-1 winner scored by three-quarters of a length beating the Andrew Balding-trained Fivethousandtoone.

The winning trainer Marcus Tregoning said: “It is early days for this horse, it was only his third run and he’s still a work in progress. I think he’s pretty smart and he showed a good attitude today.”

The victory provided Jim Crowley with a second win in the race and he said of Alkumait: “I was really impressed. He came back a lot better than we went down and switched off nicely in the race. It was all smooth, and he showed a good turn of foot. I would say he is right up there with the best of them this season (2yr-olds).”

Earlier in the afternoon, the Mark Johnston-trained Elarqam took the Group 3 Dubai Duty Free Legacy Cup to provide the first of two Group wins of the afternoon at Newbury for jockey, Jim Crowley and owner, Hamdan Al Maktoum. A small but quality field saw the five-year-old narrowly beat Desert Encounter who was going for a third consecutive win in the race.

Caption: Elarqam wins the Group 3 Dubai Duty Free Legacy Cup Stakes

This year marks a 25-year association between sponsors, Dubai Duty Free and Newbury Racecourse.