With Ryan Moore riding on the grandstand side of the track, 8-year-old Extravagant Kid (16-1) made a late charge to the lead with less than 150 yards to go on the way to a half-length triumph the $1 million Al Quoz Sprint (G1), a straight, six-furlong dash on the turf.
Extravagant Kid prevails in the $1 million Al Quoz Stakes in Dubai. Photo provided by Dubai Racing Club.
“When he did come running, he really did come running,” Walsh told Horse Racing Nation in a telephone call from New Orleans. “He has never let us down on any occasion.”
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Final Song (12-1) finished second, a neck ahead of Acklam Express (65-1) with Equilateral (10-1) another 1 1/4 lengths back in fourth. The favorite Space Blues (1-1), bidding for a sixth consecutive win, was squeezed at the start and finished ninth.
There were two other U.S. starters in the Al Quoz. True Valour (28-1) was sixth and Cowan (13-1) finished 10th in the field of 13.
Breaking through after finishing second in his three most recent U.S. starts, the last two on dirt, Extravagant Kid’s winning time was 1:09.26. It was his 50th start – and his first win in three Grade/Group 1 tries.
Extravagant Kid wins the Da Hoss Stakes at Colonial Downs in 2019. Photo by Coady Photography.
“It was just a matter of time before he won a big one for us,” Walsh said. “I had a bit of a hunch the travel would freshen his mind.”
Moore had to make snap judgments throughout what he called “a very messy race,” thinking first of going left to the inside before making a commitment to the outside. “The speed looked like it was going to be stand side,” he said, “but we had to make a decision.”
Extravagant Kid has come a long way for owner David Ross, who claimed the Kiss the Kid gelding three years ago for $75,000. He has now won 15 races and purse money exceeding $1.6 million.
“What an unbelievable race,” Ross said. “He really liked the venue here, and we thought we would take advantage. As an 8-year-old, what about that?”
Moore summed up the result with compliments for both Extravagant Kid and Walsh.
“He is a very talented horse,” Moore said. “You’ll have to watch out for Brendan when he comes back here.”
David and Dana Ross are shown with the Da Hoss trophy courtesy of Extravagant Kid’s 2019 win at Colonial Downs.
A native of Ireland who is based in the U.S., Walsh also won two years ago with Plus Que Parfait in the UAE Derby (G2). This time he was on a flight from Miami to New Orleans.
“I saw the race on the flight,” Walsh said. “But I had no Wi-Fi. When I got off the plane, my phone was blowing up.”
Walsh said he had no plan yet for Extravagant Kid’s next race, saying he would wait until he was shipped back to the U.S. to decide. He did not rule out the possibility of another trip overseas for a big race.
As he put it, “We have nothing to lose with him anymore.”