Heading into the final race of the day, the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup Sprint, the Rest of the World team were leading on 63 points, 13 ahead of their nearest rivals Great Britain and Ireland. Europe were languishing on 40 points at the foot of the table but a one-two in the last, courtesy of the Thierry Jarnet-ridden Kadrizzi and Flying Pursuit, the mount of Pierre-Charles Boudot, saw them end the day on 65 points.

However, a fourth placed finish by Kenichi Ikezoe on Suqoor earned the Rest of the World team a valuable five points, which was enough to secure victory. Captain Silvestre de Sousa was delighted with the performance of his team, which won with 68 points, and had particular praise for Lerena, who rode a 285/1 double on the card.

“It was good,” said de Sousa.

“I’ve really enjoyed the day. It’s something a bit different and was a big team effort. We had some great riders on our team and it’s great to win. I’d met Gavin before today but I hadn’t met Kenichi before. Gavin is a brilliant rider and he has showed that this afternoon with two good winners. I’d definitely like to ride in the Shergar Cup again – it’s good fun.”

Jarnet’s victory in the final race means he also rode two winners and Kadrizzi’s victory gave the Frenchman a 37.5/1 on the card. It also meant that he finished the day at the top of the Alistair Haggis Silver Saddle standings on 38 points, eight ahead of Lerena.

“I am delighted to finally ride a winner at Ascot – it’s a beautiful racecourse. The ground was perfect and it’s fantastic to win the Silver Saddle. It’s very nice to come to England and ride at these meetings. The competition is fantastic here and I’ve really enjoyed it. I’m delighted to have been the top jockey and it’s always nice to win any award.”

Ikezoe was delighted that his ride gained the 2016 Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup for the Rest of the World team. He said: “It is great that my ride in the last has clinched the Shergar Cup.”

Gavin Lerena – Shergar Cup (Liesl King)

Lerena, the most successful member of the Rest of the World team with two winners, declared: “My saddle slipped on my mount in the last but luckily it has not made any difference to the end result.

“I am very, very pleased with the day – we won and I had two winners. Thanks go to Dubai Duty Free for sponsoring the event and to the two others on my team.”

Lerena finished second in the individual standings, with 30 points to former French champion jockey Jarnet’s 38. Japanese jockey Kenichi Ikezoe was third on 25 points, while Girls Team captain Emma-Jayne Wilson, from Canada, was the leading female rider in fourth with 24 points.

The Girls team were unable to retain their Shergar Cup crown this time around finishing third on 54 points, one ahead of last-placed Great Britain and Ireland.

Reflecting on this year’s Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup, Wilson was delighted for Hayley Turner to ride a winner, having come out of retirement, and was pleased with the performance of her team.

Wilson remarked: “It’s been another fantastic year for The Girls team. For Hayley to come out of retirement and have a winner and prove the sceptics wrong was great.

“I didn’t quite have the Shergar Cup I was hoping for but I’ve been blessed to have stayed safe and all my horses have run solid efforts and they have all come home happy.

“It’s good to keep it mixed up in the standings. We are at the top of the world here with the best jockeys taking part. It was going to be competitive and it was again this year.” – Racenews

Final Team Standings:

ROW   68

EUR    65

GIRLS 54

GBI     53

Final Standings Alistair Haggis Silver Saddle:

Thierry Jarnet 38

Gavin Lerena 30

Kenichi Ikezoe 25

Emma-Jayne Wilson 24

Pierre-Charles Boudot 24

Joe Fanning  22

Martin Harley 21

Hayley Turner 20

Silvestre De Sousa 13

Josephine Gordon 10

Oisin Murphy 10

Frankie Dettori 3