Dubai World Cup night

The McMurray Family's Happy Romance (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}), who ran third in the 1400-metre G3 1351 Turf Sprint in Riyadh on Feb. 26, is pointing to the 1200-metre G1 Al Quoz Sprint on Mar. 26, according to trainer Richard Hannon. A winner of the G3 Hackwood S. last July, the bay filly ran fourth in the G1 Betfair Sprint Cup S. on Sept. 4 and tired to 11th in the G1 QIPCO British Champions Sprint S. on Oct. 16. Hannon said, "Happy Romance ran a blinder in Riyadh. She...

Saturday's G3 Winter Derby hero Alenquer (Fr) (Adlerflug {Ger}) exited the race in good order and will target the $6-million G1 Dubai Sheema Classic at Meydan on Mar. 26. Trainer William Haggas was pleased by the 4-year-old colt's performance, which broke the Lingfield course record for 1 1/4 miles. A winner of the G3 Classic Trial S. at Sandown in April and the G2 King Edward VII S. at Royal Ascot, Alenquer then completed the trifecta in the G1 Grand Prix de Paris in July and went one better in...

Trainer Nigel Tinkler was upbeat after his Group 1-placed Acklam Express (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) finished second to Lazuli (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) in the G2 Blue Point Sprint at Meydan on Friday. Placed in three starts during last year's Dubai World Cup Carnival, including a third-place effort in the G1 Al Quoz Sprint, he never factored in York's Listed Westow S. in May. He tired to 10th in the G1 King's Stand S. at Royal Ascot and was given some time off prior to his reappearance in the UAE. Starts in...

Friday marks the second week of the Dubai World Cup Carnival at Meydan in Dubai, and three group races are slated to go ahead, as well as two G2 UAE Derby preps on the seven-race card. Godolphin fields a typically strong hand in the 1800-metre G2 Al Rashidiya Presented By Riviera Beachfront By Azizi on grass, which is an early pointer to the G1 Dubai Turf at the end of March. Aiming for a sixth consecutive renewal, the royal blue silks will be carried by a quintet from trainers-Charlie Appleby...

Group 1 winner Saffron Beach (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) is targeting the G1 Dubai Turf on Mar. 26. Trained by Jane Chapple-Hyam, the chestnut won both her starts at two, including the G3 Oh So Sharp S. She resumed last April with a second in the G3 Nell Gwyn S. and was runner-up to Mother Earth (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in the G1 1000 Guineas on May 2. Off the board in the G1 Oaks and G1 Falmouth S. in June and July, respectively, the Sangster family and J. Wigan colourbearer...

Several new incentives have been unveiled for the $7.5 million+ 2022 Dubai World Cup Carnival, which begins on Jan. 13, 2022. Some of the new benefits announced by the Dubai Racing Club are as follows: Two return business class flights for trainers, in addition to three nights' accommodation at a DRC-associated hotel. Owners (one representative) will receive one Business Class return flight to use during the Carnival. Travel will also be subsidised for stable staff, with one economy class return flight provided for one groom for up to two horses,...

Less than a week remains before the $26.5-million Dubai World Cup card, split between eight Thoroughbred races and one for Purebred Arabians. Horses were out in force over the Meydan track on Monday morning, with several turning in final works prior to the big night. Most of the $12-million G1 Dubai World Cup hopefuls completed maintenance works on Monday, but one of the American contenders-Jesus' Team (Tapiture), runner-up in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. on Jan. 23--galloped 1 1/2 circuits. "We went to the track with him very...

Mogul (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) is in good form ahead of a start in the $5-million G1 Dubai Sheema Classic at Meydan on Mar. 27. Last seen in action taking the G1 Longines Hong Kong Vase at Sha Tin in December, the Coolmore partners-owned 4-year-old also saluted in the 2020 G3 Gordon S. at Goodwood in July, ran second in the Aug. 19 Great Voltigeur S. and returned to the winner's circle in the G1 Juddmonte Grand Prix de Paris at ParisLongchamp in September. Fifth in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup...

Moss Gill (Ire) (No Nay Never), third in the 2020 G1 Nunthorpe S., is targetting the Mar. 27 G1 Al Quoz Sprint at Meydan on Dubai World Cup night. His trainer, Ed Bethell, hopes to retain the services of Danny Tudhope, who has ridden the York listed hero three times previously. His latest effort was a close second in the Listed Betway Hever Sprint S. at Lingfield over the synthetic on Feb. 27. "He's going to go to Dubai, all being well, a week on Friday, for the Al Quoz...

Group 1 winner Lord North (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) will step forward in the G1 Dubai Turf over 1800 metres on Mar. 27, Racing Post reported on Monday. Trainer John Gosden accepted an invitation for the race for the Sheikh Zayed bin Mohammed Racing colourbearer. A winner of the G1 Prince Of Wales's S. last June, the bay was third in the G1 Juddmonte Internatioanl S. a month later. Unplaced in the G1 QIPCO Champion S. on Oct. 17, he was a solid fourth in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Turf...

Coolmore's Kew Gardens (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), who snapped champion stayer Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire})'s winning streak in the G2 Long Distance Cup on British Champions Day at Ascot in October, will make his 2020 bow in the $1.5-million G2 Dubai Gold Cup. The Aidan O'Brien trainee, who won the 2018 G1 Grand Prix de Paris as well as the G1 St Leger during his 3-year-old year, was never off the board in four starts last term, running second three times-in the G3 Ormonde S. in May, the G1...

Four meetings in the UAE, barring Dubai World Cup night on Mar. 28, will be conducted without spectators, the Emirates Racing Authority announced on Tuesday. The ruling comes in accordance to public safety measures pertaining to the proliferation of COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus. The dates are as follows: Meydan, Mar. 12 Al Ain, Mar. 13 Abu Dhabi, Mar. 14 Jebel Ali, Mar. 20 All races will be contested and regulated in a standard fashion and results will be recorded in an official capacity. Only the horses' connections, racing...