Al Rayyan

Wrapping up Day 29 in Qatar, the final race on the Thursday card brought together a well-matched field of 3-year-old colts that were vying for a black-type prize. After a pair of scratches, out of the remaining 16 runners, Emperor Maximus proved best, but it was not a foregone conclusion that he would be able to make the leap in company after campaigning on-track at lower levels on three prior occasions. Just last week Dec. 22, the colt won a handicap against 13 others by 1 3/4 lengths, but he...

A stakes winner in England and stakes-performed in France and in Sweden, Outbox (GB) (Frankel {GB}) added a stamp from Qatar to his passport for Saturday's His Highness The Amir Trophy in Doha and walked away with the lion's share of the US$1-million in prize money on offer. The Amir Trophy is one of three races contested locall that is recognized internationally as black-type eligible. Ridden aggressively from a wide alley by Hollie Doyle, Outbox took up a pace-pressing position from second, as Qatari Gold (Lemon Drop Kid), with Tom...

Making a remarkable fifth straight appearance in the marquee race on the Qatar racing calendar, the US$1-million H.H. The Amir Trophy, Al Wasmiyah Farm's Noor Al Hawa (Fr) (Makfi {GB}) took advantage of a soft trip attending a modest pace and raced away to a convincing victory Saturday in Doha. Berkshire Rocco (Fr) (Sir Percy {GB}), who nearly took out the 2020 G1 St Leger S., came home second ahead of last year's Qatar Derby hero Hellenistique (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) in third. The Amir Trophy is one of three...

A winner at the highest level in Germany and victorious in group races in France and England, Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Thani's homebred Aspetar (Fr) (Al Kazeem {GB}) appears the class of the field as he makes his Qatar debut in Saturday's US$1-million H H Amir Trophy (2400m) at Al Rayyan Racecourse in Doha. The lightly raced 6-year-old won the G2 Grand Prix de Chantilly and G1 Preis von Europa in 2019 while under the care of Roger Charlton and punched his ticket to the G1 Cox Plate with...

by Alan Carasso Locally owned, but French-based French King (GB) (French Fifteen {Fr}) was given a perfect ride from the front by Olivier Peslier and proved not for catching, successfully defending his title in the US$1-million HH The Amir Trophy Saturday at Al Rayyan Racecourse in Doha. American import Standard Deviation (Curlin) rallied from midpack to be an excellent second, while Pedro Cara (Fr) (Pedro the Great) backed up his last-out Qatar Derby success with a running-on third-place effort. Away beautifully from gate one, the clean chestnut entire headed off...

by Alan Carasso The three-day HH The Amir Festival comes to a conclusion with the marquee race of the meeting, the US$1-million HH The Amir Trophy, a race which has attracted last year's top-three placegetters, a local legend looking for a third win in the event, an intriguing American import and some of the world's top jockeys. The locally owned French King (GB) (French Fifteen {Fr}) defeated Royal Julius (Ire) (Royal Applause {GB}) and the well-traveled Hunting Horn (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) with relative ease 12 months ago and proved the...