Racing Weekly

ISSUE 1 • 2 NOVEMBER 2018

YOUR RACING DESTINATION

THUNDER SNOW

$17 MILLION

SHEIKH HAMDAN

GEARING UP FOR BC CLASSIC

KING ABDULAZIZ CHAMPIONSHIP

TWO-YEAR-OLDS TO RUN IN UAE

Welcome to the inaugural issue of the Racing

The Racing Weekly’s objective is to create the

Weekly, a comprehensive digital publication

ideal destination for all the regional news

focusing on horse racing news in Dubai,

highlights you need to stay informed about.

AbuDhabi, Jebel Ali, Riyadh, Bahrain and

You will also find, features, regular columns,

beyond.

interviews and latest tips.

Known as, “the sport of Kings”, the horse

Feel free to send us your comments and

racing industry annually contributes more than

requests.

$100 billion worth of spending to every level of the economy and in many different sectors

From all of us at The Racing Weekly, we wish

as well. The average horse racing owner has an

you the very best this season!

income between $25,000 to $75,000 per year, where 28% of horse owners have an average annual income that reaches six figures. The industry is also responsible for the creation of over 450,000 full time jobs and nearly 4.6 million people work within the horse racing industry every day.

D. Rashed Managing Editor info@racing-weekly.com

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THUNDER SNOW Gearing up for BREEDERS' CUP CLASSIC Bid.

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BAHRAIN RACING The new horse racing season starts today at Rashid Equestrian and Horse Racing Club.

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CORROSIVE Dubai-bound after topping day two of Autumn HIT Sale.

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NICHOLAS BACHALARD Saudi Arabia horse racing has a bright future, says departing top trainer.

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SHEIKH HAMDANÂ called for two-year-old horses to run in the UAE.

PAGE 4

SPORTING LIFE

THUNDER SNOW GEARING UP FOR BREEDERS' CUP CLASSIC BID Saeed bin Suroor is looking to Thunder Snow to continue his excellent run of international results in Saturday's Breeders' Cup Classic at Churchill Downs.

The trainer has been in fine form on a worldwide scale with Royal Meeting landing a French Group One on Sunday, while both Best Solution and Benbatl have struck at the highest level in Australia in recent weeks, with the latter also chasing home record-breaker Winx in the Cox Plate over the weekend.

Thunder Snow was an impressive winner of the Dubai World Cup at Meydan back in March and has been trained for this race, making his comeback in the Juddmonte International at York before finishing second in the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont in his two prep runs.

The Helmet colt enjoyed a spin around the Kentucky track on Monday morning and Bin Suroor is anticipating a bold show for the Godolphin team.

He said: "I've always liked the qualities of this horse.

"He has a good turn of foot which you need in the race. He's always been a very sound horse, healthy and happy. He gives you everything and he has a big heart. These are the things I like about him.

"When I first took him on to the dirt in Dubai, it was quite scary the fractions he clocked and since then everything has been geared towards preparing him for the Classic.

"Sheikh Mohammed thought the best course was to give him a break and then get him ready for this.

"He lost two shoes in the Juddmonte, but came back well to run a very good race at Belmont in the Jockey Club, where he finished a very good second.

"Mentally I'm very pleased with him and he seems to have put on some condition. He is fit and ready to go."

Connections will be hoping he fares better than the last time he ran at Churchill Downs, when he pulled up after leaving the stalls in the 2017 Kentucky Derby.

Thunder Snow was not the only British-trained contender on show on Monday, with the headline acts of Enable and Roaring Lion also strutting their stuff.

The John Gosden-trained pair paid their first visit to main track after completing their quarantine period, heading to the top of the chute in the back straight to engage in light hack under the floodlights.

NOMADIC

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PAGE 5

OVER 500 HORSES TO FLY ON EMIRATES FLIGHTS TO US KHALEEJ TIMES DUBAI

Emirates SkyCargo, the freight division of

The air cargo carrier provides a calm and

Emirates, has successfully transported the first

comfortable environment for the horses which also

group of 67 horses for the FEI World Equestrian

complies with regulations set out by national and

Games Tryon 2018.

international authorities on live animal transport

The horses were flown from Liege, Belgium to

including IATA Live Animals regulations.

Greenville-Spartanburg, US in an Emirates SkyCargo Boeing 777 freighter aircraft.

This is the first of the 19 flights that Emirates SkyCargo will be operating as a special charter for one of the most important events in the global sporting calendar.

With over 500 horses being flown for the games, this is the largest air horse charter that has been undertaken for a single sporting event.

Emirates SkyCargo worked with Peden Bloodstock, a leading international horse transportation specialist to execute the charter, the airline said in a statement.

PAGE PAGE614

RACING WEEKLY

FEATURE

DRESS YOURSELF

STAGE SET FOR NEW HORSE RACING SEASON, BAHRAIN

GULF DAILY NEWS The new horse racing season starts today at Rashid Equestrian and Horse Racing Club in Sakhir with seven feature races on the cards.

The race for the Late Shaikh Rasid bin Isa Al Khalifa Cup (Opening Day Cup) for locally bred horses, carrying a cash prize of BD5,000 and to be run over 1,600 metres, starting at 4.30pm, has attracted the biggest field of 17 horses.

But Jadeel, owned by Shaikh Hamad bin Abdulla bin Isa Al Khalifa, trained by James Naylor and to be ridden by Andrew Eliott, looks in best shape to win this race ahead of its nearest challengers The Dark Knight and Hasbah.

Laidback Romeo, owned by Al Adiyat Racing, trained by Alan Smith and to be ridden by Gerald Mosse, is the favourite to win the Late Shaikh Rashid bin Isa al Khalifa Cup for imported horses, carrying a cash prize of BD5,000 and to be run over 1,600 metres, starting at 4.05pm.

SAUDI ARABIA TO LAUNCH $17 MILLION KING ABDULAZIZ HORSE CHAMPIONSHIP ARAB NEWS RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has announced a new horse racing championship with prizes totalling more than $17 million that would make it one of the sport’s richest events.

The King Abdulaziz Horse Championship will rival the Kentucky Derby in size and attract competitors from the US, the UK and Japan, the government’s General Sports Authority said late on Tuesday, without revealing when the first championship would be held.

Riyadh is keen to develop its sports industry as part of reforms to diversify the economy beyond oil exports and create a more modern, dynamic society.

PAGE FOUR| JOURNEY

PAGE 7 The horse championship was a way for the desert kingdom to share its “historic and cultural legacy” with the world, the sports authority said in the statement.

Last year’s Dubai World Cup offered a $10-million prize for its top race, although media reported prizes for the entire event totalled $30 million. The 2018 Pegasus World Cup Invitational in Florida had a $16million purse.

PAGE 8

photos of the week

Progressive Corrosive Dubai-bound after topping day two of Autumn HIT Sale RACING POST

“He’ll ultimately head to Dubai for the Carnival but for us, the King’s Cup is extremely important and hopefully he’ll be one for that race,” said Rachid. “He’s a very good looking, good-moving, sound horse who has a chance to go on dirt - he’s bred to as a son of Uncle Mo - and he vetted very well.”

Strong demand for Dubai Carnival and King’s Cup prospects fuelled a competitive day of trade on the second day of the Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training Sale on Tuesday.

Four of the top six lots to sell are set to continue their career in the Middle East, led by Corrosive, a one-time Classic hope for Hugo Palmer who has both the Dubai Carnival and a campaign in Saudi Arabia on his agenda after selling for 450,000 guineas to Ibrahim Rachid.

Sales veteran Rachid, one of the most colourful characters on the auction circuit, outbid Anthony Stroud to land the three-year-old on behalf of Abdulrahman Fahad Albawardi, who plans to send his new recruit to Saudi Arabia to be trained.

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venture

Trained by Palmer on behalf of Vefa Ibrahim Araci, Corrosive had a productive start to the season when winning his first two races, including a competitive threeyear-old handicap over Ascot’s straight mile. A series of creditable efforts followed over the summer before he returned to winning ways with a cosy success in a Chelmsford handicap last month against older horses.

Rob Speers, who originally paid 150,000gns on behalf of Araci for the horse at last year’s Tattersalls Craven Sale, was understandably pleased with the sale.

“Corrosive has progressed through the year,” he said. “He’s become a very good handicapper and came here with global appeal.”

PAGE 9

Prince Faisal bin Khalid Alsaud

Listed-placed Archetype goes to Saudi Arabian interests for 335,000gns RACING POST

International money from a variety of players dominated proceedings at Monday’s opening day of the Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training Sale.

In a testament to the enduring and far reaching appeal of this sale, Monday's group of six-figure lots fell to interests from Saudi Arabia, Australia and America in addition to those closer to home in Britain and Ireland.

It was Saudi Arabian interests, acting through Ted Voute, who came out on top at 335,000gns for the day’s session-topper Archetype.

Listed-placed for Simon Crisford, the Le Havre colt came into the sale as a five-time winner after landing his most recent start, a conditions event at Chelmsford City. He will now continue his career in Saudi Arabia for Prince Faisal Bin Khaled’s Red Stable and has the King’s Cup as a long term target.

“He is the all-round package,” said Prince Faisal’s representative Saad bin Mishref. "He's a really smart, sound horse who should suit our races both the distances and the surface - and we hope he’ll be one for the King’s Cup later on.”

PAGE 10

Saudi Arabia horse racing has a bright future, says departing top trainer ARAB NEWS

DUBAI: The Dubai World Cup meeting on Saturday

“I was a bit reluctant at the beginning — I wasn’t

may well be the biggest stage in international

sure what I was getting into, but I spoke to a few

racing, but it also acts as a leg-up for those not yet

friends there, and they helped me make up my

in the limelight. Nicholas Bachalard knows the

mind, and I have now been there for eight years.”

opportunities that the richest night in racing at $30

There have been significant highs. Bachalard has

million (SR 112.5 million) presents all too well, and is

won more than 270 races in Saudi Arabia and

set to be part of the action at Meydan Racecourse

saddled three-time US Grade One winner Ron The

by proxy.

Greek to win The Custodian of the Two Holy

Thirteen years ago the smooth-talking 47-year-old

Mosques Cup (King’s Cup), in 2015.

Frenchman was working as a key lieutenant for

There have also been some lows. For a former

fellow French emigre Christophe Clement at Payson

American star with a heart of a lion, it was

Park in Florida.

disappointing that Ron The Greek, trailed in 12th in

Clement came to Dubai and saddled outsider

the World Cup in 2014.

Dynever to finish second to American raider Roses,

From one opportunity has come another. Last year

in May, in the Dubai World Cup, at Nad Al-Sheba for

Bachalard came to Meydan on a Dubai Carnival raid,

King Abdullah. When the Saudi royal family were

with the Saudi-owned Nashmiah. They went home

looking for a trainer in Riyadh several years later,

with the UAE 1,000 Guineas.

they were so impressed by Clement’s methods and

When Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum of

performance, that they came calling, and settled for

Dubai was searching for a replacement at Jebel Ali

one of the key cogs in the wheel. “They contacted

Stables for Gopi Selvaratnam, who replaced his

me and asked me whether I was interested in

long-serving brother Dhruba, Bachalard was once

coming to Saudi Arabia,” Bachalard told Arab News

again on the list. He was appointed head trainer at

at morning trackwork at Meydan.

Jebel Ali Stables and Racecourse in February.

OCTOBER

2019

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MIXED

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PAGE 11

Alongside the 50-60 horses that Bachalard will

“They want to improve and promote Saudi racing,

inherit over here, as the dust settles on Saturday’s

that is why they are going to have the Abdulaziz

action will be American import Economic Model,

race,” he said. “Hopefully, it will get off the ground

who will be a key player in the Godolphin Mile under

next year in February, so it does not clash with the

Joel Rosario. Economic Model won a Group 3 race for

World Cup, but they have a lot of organization to do

American trainer Chad Brown, who continued to

before then. The track in Saudi Arabia is one of the

train the horse until after the race in Florida in

nicest tracks in the world. The grounds, the way it is

February, after which Bachalard stepped in and

kept, any international visitor will have a great

bought him for his new patron. “We bought him

experience. The track is amazing, and most of the

because we thought he would be a good fit for the

international jockeys who go there rave about the

Godolphin Mile,” Bachalard said proudly. “Mostly we

surface. It was well thought-out, and well-built, all of

bought him for next year. He has tactical speed. You

the turns are banked, it is very horse-friendly, with

need tactical speed here. The horse was a lightly-

very few injuries. If they have that race, it is sure to

raced four-year-old and should improve. Once he

be a good stage for it.

runs here, he will stay here and get acclimatized to

“It will probably stay as Saudi racing. There is little

the weather. From there we will see.”

desire to have new owners or horses from abroad.

Godolphin have showed with African Story that a

Most of the horses that run in Saudi Arabia are born

win in the Godolphin Mile can set a horse up for

and raised in Saudi Arabia. They may have to bring

subsequent success in the World Cup. Were

in a few stallions to improve the breed. As long as

Economic Model to win the $1 million opener to

they keep getting the support for King Salman and

Saturday’s nine-race card, the question inevitably

the royal family, it has a bright future.”

turns to whether Bachalard might consider the new

It could be a very interesting 12 months.

record-breaking horse race slated for next year in Riyadh.

Last month the General Sports Authority announced that the King Abdulaziz Horse Championship will carry a purse of $17 million. There was scant detail, but Bachalard believes the time is ripe in Saudi Arabia and has taken a look at the international program and believes there is little room for maneuver.

PAGE 12

AL SAYEGH APPEALS FOR TWO-YEAR-OLDS TO RUN IN UAE KHALEEJ TIMES A top official from the office of Sheikh Hamdan

At the moment they (horses) are used and their

bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai

costing us money. The trainers don't train them

and UAE Minister of Finance, has called for

before January, so why don't they start training

two-year-old horses to run in the UAE.

them in October when we give it to them, and get it ready in January for racing so that way they

"I wanted to ask if it is possible to have two-

get more training before they can go for racing

year-old horses running in the emirates

instead of training in the yard."

because (northern hemisphere) horses generally complete two years on January 1, so

Al Sayegh added: "Sheikh Hamdan is happy to

we have January, February and March to run

sponsor the races over three full days while also

before they go to Britain," said Mirza Al Sayegh,

sponsoring eight of the 11 feature races. "We are

Director at Sheikh Hamdan's office, on the

very happy to sponsor the races and in fact I told

sidelines of the announcement of sponsors for

Shareef Al Halawani, manager at Jebel Ali

the season's opening race on Oct. 26.

Racecourse, that if any sponsor is backing off put us in their place," he confirmed.

"

PAGE 13

Sheikhzayedroad retired after glittering globetrotting career RACING POST

The Newmarket trainer wrote on his website: "He has been a sound horse all his life and I would hate anything to happen to him.

"When he was second the other day, and looked like he was going to win, he probably just lacked a bit of enthusiasm at the end. That was probably him saying ‘I’ve had enough.’ He has earned a happy retirement as a hack at Trillium Place, which is wonderful.

The horse, named after the one of the most popular roads in the United Arab Emirates, enjoyed success in Dubai where he landed a Group 3 prize and finished second in the Dubai Gold Cup in 2015 and 2018.

TOther notable wins include valuable handicaps at

David Simcock has paid tribute to the 'wonderful days' he has enjoyed with his stayer Sheikhzayedroad after the nine-year-old was retired from racing.

The gelding ran 49 times in his career winning 11 races, with big victories coming in the Long Distance and Doncaster Cups, as well as a sole success at Group 1 level in Woodbine's Northern Dancer Stakes in Canada.

Doncaster and Meydan and at Epsom on Derby day.

Simcock added: "He has given us some wonderful days. Even back to when he won a handicap on Derby day as a four-year-old.

"The highlight was probably Champions Day at Ascot.

It’s a championship meeting but that was one of many highlights.

"Winning in Dubai [the Group 3 Nad Al Sheba Trophy], finishing placed in two Dubai Gold Cups and winning his Grade 1 at Woodbine was very special."