Invasor overpowers field at Dubai World Cup

Invasor put to rest any doubts about who the best horse in the world is with a win Saturday in the $6-million Dubai World Cup at Nad al Sheba in the United Arab Emirates.

The reigning horse of the year won for the 11th time in 12 starts, but the anticipated showdown between Invasor and the previously unbeaten Discreet Cat never materialized.

Unchallenged in six previous starts, Discreet Cat did not show any speed out of the gate, raced in traffic and never threatened. The colt finished last in the field of seven.

Meanwhile, Invasor, whose only loss had come when he finished fourth behind Discreet Cat in the 2006 UAE Derby, couldn’t have had a better trip in the about 1 1/4 -mile race. The 5-year-old Candy Stripes horse tracked the pace of Premium Tap, the 4-1 third choice, for most of the trip, engaged that one in the long stretch and edged away in the final sixteenth of a mile to win by 1 3/4 lengths.

Owned by Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum, Invasor has now won six Group or Grade I races in a row and the World Cup victory pushed his earnings over $7.8 million.

One race earlier, Lava Man, who won his second Santa Anita Handicap in a row four weeks earlier, flopped again away from California, finishing last of 16 in the $5-million Dubai Duty Free.

Eager to prove the gelding could win outside his home state, his connections opted to go to Dubai for the first time and the result was a disaster. Lava Man pressed the pace for most of the way under Corey Nakatani, but had nothing to offer in the final furlongs in his quest to win on turf. He finished nearly 30 lengths behind the winner, Admire Moon.

“With about 3 1/2 furlongs left to run, he said, ‘I’ve had enough,’ ” Nakatani said. “That’s just not him. It’s disappointing.”

A Japanese-bred son of End Sweep, Admire Moon, who was ridden by Yutaka Take, was successful for the eighth time in 13 starts.

Although Lava Man wasn’t competitive, trainer Doug O’Neill did have a winner in Dubai. Spring At Last, who is owned by Paul Reddam and WinStar Farm LLC, won the $1-million Godolphin Mile under jockey Garrett Gomez.

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Whether Scat Daddy is the best 3-year-old in the country is a question yet to be answered, but he certainly has the number of his classmates in Florida.

The son of Johannesburg followed his victory in the Fountain of Youth four weeks ago with another in the $750,000 Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park.

The win was the fifth in eight starts for Scat Daddy, the 2-1 favorite, and completed a huge day for jockey Edgar Prado. The Eclipse Award-winning rider of 2006 won six races on the card, including another stakes with favored A.P. Arrow in the $150,000 Skip Away Handicap.

Owned by James Scatuorchio and Michael Tabor and trained by Todd Pletcher, Scat Daddy won by 1 1/4 lengths in 1:49 for the 1 1/8 miles.

Notional finished second, Chelokee was third and Stormello, who was making his second trip to Florida in less than a month, was fourth.

“This is very special because he’s a son of Johannesburg,” said Tabor, who co-owned the sire, who won the 2001 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. “He was very special to us and this one was obviously very special as well. Now it’s on to Kentucky. We know the five-week layoff leading up to that race can work after what Barbaro did last year.”

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Pletcher, who won three stakes at Gulfstream, also won the $100,000 Next Move with favored Indian Vale and added another at Santa Anita as 4-1 Fairbanks won the $107,200 Tokyo City Cup. Ridden by Richard Migliore, the 4-year-old Giant’s Causeway colt, who is owned by Barry Irwin and Jeff Siegel’s Team Valor, LLC, took the lead immediately and was never menaced, winning by 6 3/4 lengths in 1:47.87 for the 1 1/8 miles.

Neko Bay, the 8-5 favorite, finished second and 7-2 fourth choice Racketeer was third.

“We thought we would be first, second or third somewhere up the backside, obviously very close to the pace,” said Michael McCarthy, Pletcher’s local assistant. “It seemed to work out fine. When I saw the 47.04 [half mile fraction], I thought we were in pretty good shape.”