After getting satisfactory results when googling 'why do my knees hurt?' I decided to see if the famous web search tool had the answers to this weekend's fantastic card in Dubai.
Firstly I typed in 'who will win Dubai World Cup', and the page I came across showed a beaming Frankie Dettori, clad in Godolphin blue, aboard the winner - Moon Ballad. If only I'd thought of this in the spring of 2003.
Not one to give up after initial disappointment, I tried a different tactic. 'Curlin will win Dubai World Cup' brought up 29,100 results, where as 'Jalil will win Dubai World Cup' produced only 3250. For me, it's cut and dried.
Last summer, it would've been surprising had Jalil brought up any results at all. I remember watching this near $10million yearling struggle to break his maiden tag at the third attempt at odds of 2/9 in a five-runner contest at Ripon.
At the time he looked about as wise an investment as Paul Jewell's camcorder purchase, making heavy weather of beating Mark Johnston's Fantastic Morning when running as green as grass.
Grass it seems, was the problem. While Fantastic Morning has gone on to barely beat a rival in three attempts over hurdles, Jalil has thrived for the switch to dirt, winning three times at Nad Al Sheba this year.
His latest success was in the third round of the Maktoum Challenge, a race won by subsequent World Cup winners Dubai Millennium, Street Cry and Electrocutionist in the past. Consequently, he is second favourite for the world's richest race.
We don't need Google to tell us it would be a huge shock if he were to beat Curlin though. The Preakness and Breeders' Cup Classic winner is easily the best dirt horse in the world, and at a lofty peak of 129, the highest-rated to run at the Dubai Carnival since Cigar, the inaugural World Cup winner in 1996.
The only problem is his predictably cramped odds of 2/5. It'll be too short for many to get involved, but fear not, there are plenty of other betting opportunities in the top-class supporting races.
The best bet of the night could be Literato in the Group One Dubai Duty Free. It's his first start for Godolphin and I'd expect him to give Frankie Dettori extra confidence going into the World Cup aboard Jalil.
Formerly trained by Jean-Claude Rouget he ended last season's excellent campaign on a high when winning the Emirates Airlines Champion Stakes at Newmarket. He was six lengths in front of new stablemate Creachadoir that day, and he reopposes here.
It is difficult to see Creachadoir reversing the form in Dubai, though the nine-furlong trip will suit him better than the 10-furlongs of the Champion Stakes. Though Literato looks a 10-furlong specialist himself, he has such a devastating turn of foot at the end of his races it is doubtful the slightly shorter trip will inconvenience him too much.
In-between the Duty Free and the World Cup is the the Dubai Sheema Classic and Doctor Dino is taken to upset hot favourite Viva Pataca and Arc runner-up Youmzain.
He stepped up to a mile-and-a-half for the first time when driven out to win the Hong Kong Vase at Sha Tin in December and he obviously benefitted for the extra distance having improved on all previous form.
Surprisingly for a renowned world traveller this is his first appearance at the Carnival but he can make it a winning one for France-based handler Richard Gibson.
The only slight negative is 'Doctor Dino will win Dubai Sheema Classic' brings up only 414 search engine results, where as 'Viva Pataca will win Dubai Sheema Classic' registers a relatively massive 1190.
Though not one to knock the World Wide Web after all it has done for me, I reckon it's got this one wrong and take Doctor Dino to defy the stats and oblige at tasty prices as big as 8/1.
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