Frankie Dettori will on Saturday ride in a race in Saudi Arabia named in honour of Prince Khalid Abdullah, the founder of the Juddmonte breeding and racing empire who died last Jan. 12.
Dettori rode Khalid Abdullah's great homebred mare Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) in all bar two of her 19 races for trainer John Gosden, for two wins in the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, three wins in the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S., victories in the Epsom, Irish and Yorkshire Oaks', G1 Coral-Eclipse and GI Breeders' Cup Turf.
“Prince Khalid did amazing things for the sport of horse racing and it's a pleasure to ride in the race named in his honour,” said Dettori. “He will never be forgotten, and I'll be forever grateful for all the opportunities I was given to ride for him, not least Enable who gave us all such incredible memories.”
“I've ridden in Saudi for years and the racing calendar out there is very strong now,” Dettori added. “Of course, there is the Saudi Cup meeting next month, but there are more good races with top prize money throughout the winter that make it an attractive option for the European jockeys. The dirt course is top-class, and the turf track is beautiful. It's fresh every year, you really can't fault it.
Dettori will ride the former Andrew Balding-trained Recovery Run (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), who won an Ascot handicap by four lengths last summer and is now trained by Allan Smith for Al Adiyat Racing.
“The Prince Khalid Bin Abdullah Cup on Saturday looks an interesting race, with plenty of familiar names in there like My Frankel and Fabilis,” said Dettori. “I remember I rode Crossed Baton to win the Derby Trial at Epsom a few years back and he only left John [Gosden]'s last year, so he's interesting too. As for my horse, Recovery Run, he won his last start by 21 lengths, so I'd like to think he's got a good chance.”
Silvestre de Sousa will partner the former Khalid Abdullah runner Fabilis in the Prince Khalid Bin Abdullah Cup, and he said, “It's a real honour to have been asked and I am looking forward to spending time out there. The racing is good quality and the people are so welcoming.”
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
