There was double joy for Godolphin yesterday as two of the UAE-based stable's horses won important races.
Genius Beast was the impressive winner of the Group 3 bet365 Classic Trial at Sandown in England while Grand Vent galloped to victory in the Group 2 Prix Noailles at Longchamp near Paris.
Ahmed Ajtebi, the Emirati jockey, was on Genius Beast who had a dream run up in the inside rail, coming home two and a quarter lengths clear of Richard Hannon's pair Measuring Time and Auld Burns.
Mahmood al Zarooni, the trainer, said it had only been a late decision for the horse to compete in the race.
"We only decided last minute to run him as we thought he wouldn't like the ground but we decided that as he had never tried fast ground, he should once," he said.
"We looked after him last year and he ran a very nice race. We will probably give him one more run to see if he is a Derby horse - we will maybe think about the Dante at York."
Elsewhere, Grand Vent beat seven other horses in the Prix Noailles over a mile and a quarter at Longchamp.
The Andre Fabre-trained three-year-old Shirocco colt was held up in fifth as stable companion Cayman Islands set a steady pace in the mile and a quarter race
But, under jockey Maxime Guyon, Grand Vent made good progress came through with a furlong remaining to compete for the lead. He held off the challenge of Durer, who finished second, to come across the finish line by half a length.
"My horse won well. The pacemaker set a sensible pace and Grand Vent quickened nicely in the straight," Guyon told godolphin.com.
Grand Vent's next possible target is the Group 2 Prix Hocquart over 11 furlongs at Longchamp on May 1.