RICHARD Hannon has whittled his Dubai-bound team down to three, ruling out 2000 Guineas winner Night Of Thunder.

Champion trainer Hannon will instead rely on Ninjago, Zurigha and Magic City.

Hannon cited the fact nobody knows how the new dirt track will ride as a reason his runners will tend to be on the turf track.

"Nobody knows how the new dirt track at Meydan will ride, so, while we could well give them a spin or two in the mornings just to test the temperature of the water, in all probability we will focus on the turf races," he said on www.richardhannonracing.co.uk.

"Ninjago has had a nice break since finishing second in the Stewards' Cup at Goodwood off a mark of 103, but he only ran the three times last year, finishing close up third in a hot handicap at Newmarket's Guineas meeting, for which he started favourite, and not being disgraced in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot, where he finished fifth in his group and was only beaten six lengths. So he is a relatively fresh horse and raring to get on that plane.

"You need a Group performer to win some of these sprint handicaps in Dubai these days, so good is the prize money, but Ninjago has the class to be a big player out there.

"Similarly, Zurigha is a quality filly capable of making her presence felt. She finished fourth in the French 1000 Guineas, and, though she did not win on turf last season, she was only beaten four lengths in the Group Three Darley Stakes at Newmarket on her final run.

"It will be interesting to see what she makes of the dirt as she loved the polytrack surface at Kempton. She was unbeaten in three visits, though we lost the last victory because of a banned substance.

"Finally, Magic City, who signed off with a win over seven furlongs at Kempton last month, deserves a shot at the big pots. He likes a turning track, but, though he always shone at courses like Goodwood and Kempton, which are right-handed, he also won around Epsom, so going left-handed at Meydan won't be a problem."