Switzerland Rolls in Dubai Golden Shaheen

RRR racing's Switzerland (Speightstown) showed that age is merely a number with an emphatic victory in the G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen at Meydan Saturday. Jockey Tadhg O'Shea wisely stationed the 8-year-old just behind a sharp pace, carved out by the American duo of Drain the Clock (Maclean's Music) and Wondrwherecraigis (Munnings) who were shadowed by Al Tariq (Fr) (Oasis Dream {GB}). Turning for home, Drain the Clock shook clear from the others as Switzerland began to pick up the tempo confidently while in the five path. Sat down for the stretch drive by O'Shea, the gelding turned on all boosters, catapulting himself to the front approaching the 200-metre marker and was given some encouragement late to fend off the Japanese invader Red Le Zele (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) by 1 3/4 lengths at the wire. The American-based Dr. Schivel (Violence), who was held in midpack in the early going, rallied to pick up third a half-length behind.

Bhupat Seemar, who is on track to this season's UAE training championship, said, “It's such a fantastic result. We've always really liked the horse. Tadgh and I spoke this morning and made a plan. I knew there would be plenty of pace in the race, so we wanted to pick up the pieces. Turning for home, Tadgh said, 'We'd just go with one kick.'”

O'Shea, who is on course for a 10th UAE champion jockey title, added, “There was a lot speed on and this horse excels in a truly run race. We were the outsider today and I said to Bhupat, 'Let's ride him accordingly.' There's no point putting him in the race and getting him in a speed duel, so we rode him like we did in the Al Garhoud Sprint [at Meydan on New Year's Day] and if he shows that turn of foot, he'd be competitive. Thankfully, it all worked and he's a horse who grew in confidence as the race went on. They were starting to stop and flounder and he was coming harder on the bridle–so it was fantastic.”

Yuga Kawada, aboard the runner-up in the last two renewals of the Shaheen, Red Le Zele, said “It was a good result. He likes to do his running at the back of the field in a 1200-metre race. That's just his style and he did the same here, and I had a very good feeling about him doing well going into this but there was too much ground to make up in the end. But, it was a good race and I'm happy with the way he went.”

A dual Grade III winner in the U.S. for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen during his sophomore year, Switzerland made a couple of trainer switches since, including a three-race stint with six-time champion trainer Satish Seemar for whom he won last year's G3 Dubawi S. at Meydan before transferring to his assistant and nephew for 2022. Kicking off the season an impressive winner in the Listed Al Garhoud Sprint, he was sixth under Adrie de Vries in his latest start in the G3 Riyadh Dirt Sprint Feb. 26.

“He came back from Saudi Arabia with a dirty scope and he was drawn bad there,” explained O'Shea. “It was a shame I couldn't go and ride him there, but he's come back better than ever–I'd say that's a career best. It's my first Group 1 winner and I'm in the 40 club! I have a good mate Adrian Nicholls who said 'don't give up, it'll come'.”

The gelding also gave his first-term trainer his initial Group 1 victory since taking out his license last fall following his uncle's suspension.

“We'll look to bring him back next year. And you never know, even at eight there could be some more improvement in him,” added Seemar. “It's a fantastic team we have behind us and I need to thank so many people, I'm in a very privileged position.”

Pedigree Notes:
A $170,000 KEENOV weanling and $175,000 KEESEP yearling purchase, Switzerland flourished into a $500,000 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic juvenile buy. Bred by Branch Family Trust, he is the third foal out of SW Czechers (Indian Charlie), who also hit the board in a trio of Grade III turf tests in the U.S. The 17-year-old mare is also responsible for an unraced 3-year-old filly by Connect and a juvenile filly by Speightstown. Her most recent live foal, a full-brother to Switzerland, brought $350,000 at last fall's Keeneland November sale. This represents the extended family of GI Travers S. winner Willow Hour (Bold Hour). The victory gives Speightstown his 23 Group 1/Grade I victory.

Saturday, Meydan, Dubai
DUBAI GOLDEN SHAHEEN SPONSORED BY ATLANTIS DUBAI-G1, $2,000,000, Meydan, 3-26, 3yo/up, 6f, 1:11.13, fs.
1–SWITZERLAND, 126, g, 8, by Speightstown
1st Dam: Czechers (MSW & MGSP-US, $298,349),
                                by Indian Charlie
2nd Dam: Pine Rob, by Pine Bluff
3rd Dam: Cherryrob, by Roberto
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. ($170,000 Wlg '14 KEENOV; $175,000 Ylg
'15 KEESEP; $500,000 2yo '16 FTMMAY). O-RRR Racing;
B-Branch Family Trust (KY); T-Bhupat Seemar; J-Tadhg O'Shea;
$1,160,000. Lifetime Record: MGSW-US, 27-8-3-4, $1,869,052.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick
Rating: A+.
2–Red Le Zele (Jpn), 126, h, 6, Lord Kanaloa (Jpn)–French Noir
(Jpn), by French Deputy. O-Tokyo Horse Racing Co Ltd;
B-Shadai Farm (JPN); T-Takayuki Yasuda. $400,000.
3–Dr. Schivel, 126, c, 4, Violence–Lil Nugget, by Mining For
Money. ($37,000 RNA Ylg '19 KEEJAN). O-Red Baron's Barn
LLC, Rancho Temescal et al; B-William A. Branch & Arnold R.
Hill (KY); T-Mark Glatt. $200,000.
Margins: 1 3/4, HF, HD.
Also Ran: Chain of Love (Jpn), Eastern World (Ire), Strongconstitution, Drain the Clock, Everfast, Manjeer (Ire), Wondrwherecraigis, Al Tariq (Fr), Mobaadel, Good Effort (Ire). Scratched: Meraas (GB). Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. 

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Dubai World Cup Night Card Attracts 32 Group 1 Winners

The likely fields for the nine group races (one Arabian and eight Thoroughbred) of the $30.5-million Dubai World Cup night card on Mar. 26, were revealed on Thursday. A total of 32 Group/Grade 1 winners will take part in the Meydan showpiece.

Todd Pletcher trainee Life Is Good (Into Mischief), a winner of the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile and GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S., anchors the $12-million G1 Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airlines. Fellow Americans joining him in the field are Grade I winners Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow)-who already sports a win over the surface in the G2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 earlier this winter for Doug O'Neill, and Country Grammer (Tonalist), while the multiple Grade I-placed Midnight Bourbon (Tiznow) also takes part. The latter pair were second and third in the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup on Feb. 26, and are trained by Bob Baffert and Steve Asmussen, respectively. Last year's Dubai World Cup second and third, Chuwa Wizard (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) and Godolpin's Magny Cours (Medaglia d'Oro) have also signed on. Another in the royal blue is Group 2 winner Real World (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) from the yard of Saeed bin Suroor. Hypothetical (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}), the winner of the G1 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 at the beginning of the month and the second-place finisher Remorse (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), are also part of the field.

A field of 14 lines up in the $6-million Longines Dubai Sheema Classic, with a pair of Japanese Group 1 winner-Glory Vase (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) and Shahryar (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) representing the Land of the Rising Sun. Godolphin's GI Breeders' Cup Turf hero Yibir (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) for Charlie Appleby and G1 Coronation Cup victor Pyledriver (GB) (Harbour Watch {Ire}) have also thrown their hats in the ring. Others in the Sheema Classic are William Haggas's Dubai Honour (Ire) (Pride Of Dubai {Aus}) and Alenquer (Fr) (Adlerflug {Ger}), while Owen Burrows will saddle G2 Dubai City Of Gold scorer Hukum (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}).

John and Thady Gosden's Lord North (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) will defend his title in the 1800-metre $5-million G1 Dubai Turf Sponsored By DP World, but multiple Group 1 winner Lord Glitters (Fr) (Whipper) and a trio of Japanese hopefuls–Schnell Meister (Ger) (Kingman {GB}), Vin De Garde (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) and Panthalassa (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn})–will make his task difficult.

In the $2-million 1200-metre G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen Sponsored By Atlantis Dubai, American Grade I winners Dr. Schivel (VIolence) and Drain The Clock (Maclean's Music) lock horns with the Japanese duo of Chain Of Love (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) and Red Le Zele (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}). Another Japanese entrant, Copano Kicking (Sprint At Last), who ran fifth in the 2021 Golden Shaheen, has been withdrawn from consideration due to an injury.

On turf, the 1200-metre $1,500,000 G1 Al Quoz Sprint Sponsored by Azizi Developments sees three Charlie Appleby Godolphin colourbearers-Group 1 winner Creative Force (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), Man Of Promise (Into Mischief) and Group 2 winner Naval Crown (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) go up against European Group 1 winners Emaraaty Ana (GB) (Shamardal) and A Case Of You (Ire) (Hot Streak {Ire}).

Classic hopefuls square off in the $1-million 1900-metre G2 UAE Derby Sponsored By Irwin, and Bob Baffert's GI Del Mar Futurity and G3 Saudi Derby victor Pinehurst (Twirling Candy) heads the field, which also includes the Saudi Derby runner-up Sekifu (Jpn) (Henny Hughes). The 1600-metre $1-million G2 Godolphin Mile Sponsored By Nakheel features last year's winner Secret Ambition (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}), who is aiming to defend his title. The longest race on the card, is the 3200-metre $1-million G2 Dubai Gold Cup Sponsored By Al Tayer Motors on grass. Japanese trainer Yoshito Yahagi saddles G3 Longines Red Sea Turf H. winner Stay Foolish (Jpn) (Stay Gold {Jpn}), who will face the undefeated G3 Nad Al Sheba Trophy winner Manobo (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) for Godolphin and Charlie Appleby.

“We are delighted with the strength of the entries for the 26th Dubai World Cup meeting,” said Major General Mohammed Essa Al Adhab, General Manager of Dubai Racing Club. “We have strength and depth across all nine races and it's wonderful to have so many different countries represented.

“We are also extremely happy to be able to welcome back a capacity crowd for the first time since 2019 and we hope that everyone will enjoy a superb evening of racing.”

The G1 Kahayla Classic for Arabians will begin at 3:45 p.m. local time, and the Dubai World Cup will take place at 8:30 p.m. Meydan Racecourse opens at 12 p.m., and tickets are available on the Dubai Racing Club website.

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FS1 Provides Coverage of Dubai World Cup

FS1 will offer live coverage of the G1 Dubai World Cup, with post time scheduled for 12:50 p.m. EST, Saturday, Mar. 27. Additionally, the deep undercard features six stakes, which will air live from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. EST on FS1. Coverage of the Dubai World Cup card on FS1 is presented by Star Guitar.

Rishi Persad, Tom Stanley and Angus McNae will be hosting the action from London, while Nick Lightfoot and Bernard Condren will bring viewers all the latest from Meydan Racecourse. The race call will be provided by Craig Evans. Laffit Pincay III will offer stateside updates live from Aqueduct Racetrack. Wagering is available in the United States via NYRA Bets.

In addition to the Dubai World Cup, the telecast will include live coverage of the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic [12:10 p.m.].

The Dubai World Cup undercard includes the G2 Godolphin Mile; G2 Dubai Gold Cup; G1 Al Quoz Sprint; G2 UAE Derby; G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen and G1 Dubai Turf.

Free Equibase-provided past performances are available for races that are part of the broadcast and can be accessed at https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.

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International Cast Nominated for DWC

Over 700 horses have been nominated for the 25th running of the Dubai World Cup night card on Mar. 27. Nineteen countries are represented among the 762 horses which resulted in 1,511 nominations.

Leading the 176 nominations for the $12-million G1 Dubai World Cup over 2000 metres on dirt is GI Pegasus World Cup hero Knicks Go (Paynter) for Brad Cox and GI Runhappy Malibu S. victor Charlatan (Speightstown) for Bob Baffert. MG1SW Code of Honor (Noble Mission {GB}) will also take part, while Godolphin fields undefeated Maxfield (Street Sense) from the barn of Brendan Walsh. Grade II winners Sleepy Eyes Todd (Paddy O'Prado) and Tax (Arch) have also signed on, as has John Gosden's Dubai Warrior (GB) (Dansili {GB}).

The 2410-metre $5-million G1 Dubai Sheema Classic received 167 nominations, led by globetrotting MG1SW Addeybb (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}) for William Haggas. Japan is sending the MG1SW and 2020 G1 Arima Kinen heroine Chrono Genesis (Jpn) (Bago {Fr}) and G1SW Glory Vase (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}). Other top-level winners on the list of nominees include Bill Mott's Channel Maker (English Channel), David Smaga's Nao Da Mais (Brz) (T. H. Approval) and Aidan O'Brien's Mogul (GB) (Galileo {Ire}).

Held over 1800 metres, the $4-million G1 Dubai Turf attracted 209 nominees led by Group 1 winner Lord North (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) for John Gosden and GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational S. winner Colonel Liam (Liam's Map) for Todd Pletcher. Pletcher also saddles GSW Largent (Into Mischief). G1 Queen Anne S. hero Lord Glitters (Fr) (Whipper) is also part of the field for David O'Meara.

Americans have won 13 of the 24 editions of the $1.5-million G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen, and Grade I winner C Z Rocket (City Zip) is the leading light for trainer Peter Miller of the 184 nominees. Steve Asmussen's Yaupon (Uncle Mo) has saluted at Grade II level, while 2019 Golden Shaheen runner-up Matera Sky (Speightstown) returns from the yard of Hideyuki Mori. Japan also has Yoshito Yahagi's Justin (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}), while Gladiator King (Curlin) represents the locals in the 1200-metre test.

The fifth Thoroughbred Group 1 on tap for the evening is the $1-million Al Quoz Sprint, with 178 horses named as hopefuls for the six-panel turf dash. Aussie MG1SW Bivouac (Aus) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) flies the flag for Godolphin and James Cummings. Fellow Aussie Oleksandra (Aus) (Animal Kingdom) moved to the barn of American Neil Drysdale, but also is signed on, as is Roger Teal's G1 July Cup victor Oxted (GB) (Mayson {GB}) among others.

The G2 UAE Derby drew 148 prospective sophomores and Steve Asmussen's MGISW Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) leads the way. Doug O'Neill sends GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile bridesmaid Hot Rod Charlie (Oxbow), and Bob Baffert's duo of GSW & GISP Spielberg (Union Rags) and recent GSW Medina Spirit (Protonico). Listed UAE 1000 Guineas heroine Soft Whisper (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) could also make some noise.

In the $750,000 G2 Godolphin Mile, Hong Kong sends Elusive State (Aus) (All American {Aus}), while MGSW Mr Freeze (To Honor and Serve) represents Dale Romans. The 237 nominations also see Fawzi Nass's Port Lions (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) set to run.

Rounding out the Throughbred races is the $750,000 G2 Dubai Gold Cup over 3200 metres on grass. The 121 nominees features G1 Melbourne Cup placegetter Prince of Arran (GB) (Shirocco {Ger}), Jamie Osborne's Mekong (GB) (Frankel {GB}), and French Group 1 winners Call the Wind (GB) (Frankel {GB}) and Subjectivist (GB) (Teofilo {Ire}), the latter for Mark Johnston.

For the full list of the nominees, please click here. The first supplementary stage closes on Feb. 10, the second on Mar. 8 and the final supplementary stage on Mar. 21. Connections must pay 0.1% at the first stage, 1% at the second stage and 10% at the final stage of their respective races' prizemoney to enter.

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