Oisin Murphy guides Zuraig to victory. Pic: Francesca Altoft
In the pink and blue colours of Noora Racing Ltd, Zuraig (GB) (Teofilo x Dakatari) opened his scorecard on Monday.
Trained by Andrew Balding, the 3-year-old colt, was making just his second racecourse appearance in the Free Tips Daily On attheraces.com Novice Median Auction Stakes, for 3-5 year olds over 2,000m on the sharp turning track of Windsor, UK.
Ridden by Oisin Murphy, Zuraig sat quietly in mid-division in a messy race which saw the lead switch between different horses, and a late course correction for one runner who nearly took the wrong track.
Once in the straight, Zuraig took some time to find his balance when coming under pressure from his jockey, but once settled, he flew home in the final furling to win by three quarters of a length in front of the Richard Hannon-trained and Sean Levey ridden Remediym (GB) (Adaay x Lamentation).
The George Boughey-trained and Nicola Currie-ridden Fire Eyes (FR) (Toronado x Aldayha) finished a further half-length behind in third.
