Muhaarar wins a thrilling July Cup

Muhaarar ground down Tropics to win the July Cup at the death

Muhaarar needed every inch of the six-furlong trip to get up in a dramatic photo finish and win the Darley July Cup from the courageous Tropics, with Eastern Impact back in third.

Trained by Charles Hills and ridden by Paul Hanagan, Muhaarar added a second Group 1 to his name, following on from his impressive victory in last month’s Commonwealth Cup and emulating his sire Oasis Dream, who won the July Cup in 2003.

A huge shock looked on the cards coming down inside the final furlong with the 2/1 joint favourites Muhaarar and Brazen Beau seemingly not finding a great deal for their respective rider’s urgings, and the front trio, which included Tropics, seemingly getting away from the main group.

Muhaarar, a winner over 7 furlongs, found plenty for pressure in the final 100 yards however, and he flashed home to deny the front-running Tropics in a photo. The official distance was just a nose, with a further length-and-a-half back to 50/1 shot Eastern Impact.

Trainer Hills had expressed his concerns about the track prior to the race, and he said afterwards: “He didn’t come down the hill well, but he battled all the way to the line.” Hills mentioned many of the top Group 1 sprints across the UK and France as possible targets for the remainder of the season, including the Sprint Cup at Haydock in September, he also noted that a return to seven furlongs would prove no barrier to Muhaarar, who won the Greenham at Newbury over that distance on his debut this season.

Muhaarar is an up-to-scratch winner of the July Cup, coming in to the race Timeform Rated 128p, which is incidentally the same pre-race rating held by both of the last three-year-old winners, Dream Ahead and Sakhee’s Secret, who won the race in 2011 and 2007 respectively.

The close proximity of Tropics (Timeform Rated 119) and Eastern Impact (116) will mean that Muhaarar may not have improved on the impressive Timeform Rating of 128 he recorded at Ascot, but regardless of that he remains a very exciting top-class prospect who will find plenty more winnable races throughout the season.