If you love horse racing, then Saturday, March 27, is the day for you.
Non-stop action begins in the morning from Meydan with the Dubai World Cup card with huge fields for graded stakes races highlighted by the $12 million DUBAI WORLD CUP (G1). Post time for the Dubai World Cup is 12:50 pm. EST.
Also on the Meydan card is the DUBAI SHEEMA CLASSIC (G1), 12:10 p.m.) worth $5 million on the turf and Canadian/Ontario-bred CHANNEL MAKER heads that field from post 2.
There is also the UAE Derby for 3-year-olds at the Al Quoz Sprint.
Later Saturday there are big cards at Gulfstream Park – 10 stakes races including the Florida Derby (G1) – and Turfway Park on Tapeta, featuring the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3), also a stepping stone to the Kentucky Derby (G1).
The World Cup does not have the high-profile field as it has in the past as it has been affected by the Saudi Cup, the Pegasus World Cup and currently, the COVID-19 pandemic. There will not be any fans at Meydan for the big card.
Favoured in the Dubai World Cup is Godolphin’s MYSTIC GUIDE (Ghostzapper – Music Note by A.P. Indy), trained by Mike Stidham. Mystic Guide is coming off a six-length win in the slop in the Grade 3 Razorback Handicap at Oaklawn Park on Feb. 27. The 4-year-old colt won the Jim Dandy (G2) last year and was a close second in the Jockey Club Gold Cup. Luis Saez rides.
The American contingent in the World Cup also includes Jesus’ Team, second in the Pegasus World Cup, Sleepy Eyes Todd, fourth in the Pegasus and Charles Fipke’s Title Ready, winner of the Louisiana Handicap.
Japanese interests are represented by Grade 1 winner, Chuwa Wizard, who claimed the Champions Cup at Chukyo Racecourse in December 2020 for trainer Ryuji Okubo, while Uruguay’s Ajuste Fiscal lines up for trainer Antonio Cintra. Bahraini handler, Fawzi Nass saddles a first Dubai World Cup runner with Salute The Soldier, whose route to the Dubai World Cup included victory in two out of the three traditional Dubai prep races – the Group 2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 over 1900m and the Group 1 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 over the same 2000m of the Dubai World Cup.
After two days of light exercise in the barn area, Channel Maker returned to the dirt track on Wednesday morning to gallop 2400m under rider and assistant trainer, Neil Poznansky. Channel Maker, the 2020 Eclipse Award champion Turf Male is trained by Bill for owners Gary Barber, Reeve Racing, Wachtel Stable and R.A. Hill Stable.
“He’s got to run a mile and a half (2400m), so you can’t go too easy with him. But he’s not a sprinter so we don’t want him too sharp, either. I’ve been galloping him a mile and a half every two or three days and then giving him light exercise for a day. That’s been our routine. He was full of himself today when we galloped over the track. He looks good, he feels good and he has plenty of energy. Now we just have to get him to Saturday,” said Poznansky.
For more on the World Cup visit here.
Saturday, Meydan, UAE, post time: 8:50 p.m.
DUBAI WORLD CUP SPONSORED BY EMIRATES AIRLINE-G1, $12,000,000, NH4yo/up, SH3yo/up, 2000m
Saddle Cloth Post HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 13 Ajuste Fiscal (Uru) Ioya Bigtime Leal Pereira 126
2 7 Capezzano Bernardini Ffrench bin Ghadayer 126
3 3 Chuwa Wizard (Jpn) King Kamehameha (Jpn) Tosaki Okubo 126
4 14 Gifts of Gold (Ire) Invincible Spirit (Ire) Soumillon bin Suroor 126
5 1 Great Scot (GB) Requinto (Ire) Dettori Misriff 126
6 2 Hypothetical (Ire) Lope de Vega (Ire) Barzalona bin Ghadayer 126
7 9 Jesus’ Team K Tapiture Rosario D’Angelo 126
8 12 Magny Cours Medaglia d’Oro Buick Fabre 126
9 5 Military Law (GB) Dubawi (Ire) Fresu Al Mheiri 126
10 6 Mystic Guide Ghostzapper Saez Stidham 126
11 11 Salute the Soldier (Ger) Sepoy (Aus) de Vries Nass 126
12 10 Sleepy Eyes Todd K Paddy O’Prado Moreno Silva 126
13 8 Thegreatcollection Saint Anddan Cosgrave Watson 126
14 4 Title Ready More Than Ready Moore Stewart 126
Saturday, Meydan, UAE, post time: 8:10 p.m.
LONGINES DUBAI SHEEMA CLASSIC PRESENTED BY LONGINES-G1, $5,000,000, NH4yo/up, SH3yo/up, 2410mT
SC PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 2 Channel Maker K English Channel Rosario Mott 126
2 7 Dubai Future (GB) Dubawi (Ire) Dettori bin Suroor 126
3 4 Simsir (Ire) Zoffany (Ire) de Vries Nass 126
4 6 Star Safari (GB) Sea The Stars (Ire) Barzalona Appleby 126
5 5 Walton Street (GB) Cape Cross (Ire) Buick Appleby 126
6 3 Berkshire Rocco (Fr) Sir Percy (GB) Watson Balding 125
7 10 Mishriff (Ire) Make Believe (GB) Egan Gosden 125
8 1 Mogul (GB) Galileo (Ire) Moore O’Brien 125
9 8 Chrono Genesis (Jpn) (f) Bago (Fr) Kitamura Saito 121
10 9 Loves Only You (Jpn) (f) Deep Impact (Jpn) Murphy Yahagi 121
More from News:
