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Saudi Cup Hero Emblem Road Returns In Grand Prix de Vichy

Emblem Road (Quality Road), who won the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup in February, will return to the racecourse in the 2000m G3 Grand Prix de Vichy on July 20. Representing Prince Saud bin Salman Abdulaziz, the 4-year-old entire was 50-1 when he ran out a half-length winner of the Saudi Cup for trainer Mitab Almulawah. Transferred to Alessandro Botti, who is based in Chantilly, Emblem Road will summer in France, before going on to the Breeders' Cup at Keeneland in November. He took a spin over the Chantilly turf course on Monday morning.

Olivier Peslier said, “We stayed behind the lead [horse] and made him run 400 metres quick. He closed a little bit late, but he was coming in the end. The horse is very well.”

Renato Geiger, manager of the racing and bloodstock interests for Prince Saud, said, “After the horse won the Saudi Cup, we had the thought to go to the Breeders' Cup. The first plan was a holiday [in France], not really to run. We thought we'd give him a break and then head to America for a prep race before the Breeders' Cup.

“When Prince Saud bin Salman bin Abdulaziz decided to race him in France, I knew that Alessandro Botti–cousin of Italian trainer Stefano Botti and Newmarket-based Marco Botti–was the right man.”

“There is a nice 2000m race–the Grand Prix de Vichy–where we are going next Wednesday,” added Geiger. “We picked Vichy because it is a flat track, so there are no tricky situations. Where he heads after that is down to Prince Saud bin Salman bin Abdulaziz. If you look at his work, he looks good on turf. Physically he's a sort of hybrid. He's a smart horse, an athletic horse and we think he's a very special horse.”

“He's a horse that will never show who he is in the mornings,” he continued. “He's very laid back. That's why Olivier [Peslier] was picked to ride him. He's not only a good racing jockey, but he's a good tester too.

“In the last three weeks, [Emblem Road]'s come along very well.”

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Mishriff to Skip DWC Meeting and Return in Eclipse

Prince Faisal's globetrotting multiple Group 1 winner Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}) has recovered in good order from a last-placed finish in the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup near the end of February, but will not defend his G1 Dubai Sheema Classic title on Mar. 26. The John and Thady Gosden trainee will instead wait until the G1 Coral-Eclipse S. in July. Also, a winner of the G1 Juddmonte International S. at York in August, the 5-year-old entire was fourth in the G1 QIPCO Champion S. on Oct. 16.

Ted Voute, Racing Manager for Prince Faisal, said, “I saw John Gosden at Wednesday at Kempton and he said he was sound and great and he hadn't done any veterinary check-ups yet. He was on Warren Hill and everything appeared fine.

“He definitely wasn't himself in the Saudi Cup. Basically, most of last year, every time he ran in a Group 1 we did a medical check-up afterwards. He is valuable and he is pretty well insured, so we made that a standard practice. I think we are waiting to see if that throws any light on it.

“Looking at it, I think it was multi-factorial. He didn't break as well as last year and David had to fight with him a little bit. Every time you do that he hangs his head on the side slightly and says, 'Oh, I'm not sure I like this'. The track was a little bit deeper and he got some dirt in his face, and he wasn't used to that particularly. I don't think any one of those things beat him, but maybe a combination of all of them might have done.

“I can't pinpoint anything apart from what everybody else can see at this moment. I'm sure John will say something when he has run the tests.”

Voute added, “John did say he is not in any rush. We will try to follow the same plan as last year, so that would be the Eclipse next. We definitely won't go to Dubai. I say that, but last year we said we wouldn't go, then all of a sudden we went to the Sheema Classic.”

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Full Examination For Mishriff After Saudi Cup No Show

Prince Faisal's globetrotting multiple Group 1 winner Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}) will undergo a thorough examination once he returns to the UK, according to co-trainer Thady Gosden, who trains with his father John. The 2021 G1 Juddmonte International and G1 Dubai Sheema Classic hero was attempting to become the world's richest racehorse with a title defence of the $20-million Saudi Cup, which was elevated to Group 1 status this term. However, the 2020 G1 Prix du Jockey Club hero failed to fire in Riyadh on Sunday and trailed home last of 14. After his International win last summer, he was fourth in the G1 QIPCO Champion S. at Ascot on Oct. 16.

Gosden said on Monday, “He was hard up on the pace early and he just stopped coming round the bend. He's flying back to the UK today so he'll have full check-up with the vet when he gets home.”

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Mishriff on Track For Saudi Cup Title Defence

Prince Faisal's 2021 $20-million Saudi Cup hero Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}) is in excellent form ahead of his defence of his crown in the 2022 edition, the first time the race has been accorded Group 1 status. The John and Thady Gosden runner took the G1 Sheema Classic at Meydan last March, and was third in Sandown's G1 Eclipse S. July. Second to Adayar (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) in the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. on July 24, he bounced back to win the G1 Juddmonte International S. a month later. In his final 2021 start, the 5-year-old was fourth in the G1 Champion S. at Ascot on Oct. 16.

“He's a year older and a little bigger, but he's been training well up to the race so far so let's hope it continues like that,” said co-trainer Thady Gosden. “It's more of a challenge being the middle of winter over here. We've been lucky to avoid the snow so far, but it has been cold and frosty. It's more straightforward in a warmer climate, but we're lucky it hasn't been too cold here.

“We'll get the Saudi hurdle out of the way and then there are two possible races on World Cup night, the Sheema Classic and the [G1 Dubai] World Cup itself and I'm sure Prince Faisal will know which he'd like to go for.

“Then we've got a long season here so there's a few bridges to cross before we start thinking of the Breeders' Cup.”

Another Gosden runner pointed to the Saudi Cup meeting at the end of February is dual Group 1 winner Lord North (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). The winner of the 2020 G1 Prince of Wales's S. has not been seen in action since he captured the G1 Dubai Turf at the end of March and is aiming for the Neom Cup on the Saudi Cup undercard.

“Lord North had a bit of an issue and because he's a horse of such calibre we've given him all the time he needs, but he's back training well now and hopefully he gets to the Neom,” said Gosden. “He's bouncing around the place and he's pretty determined to get out there. It looks a tough field and Pyledriver ran exceptionally well in Hong Kong, but he's back to his old self.”

The G1 Coronation Cup winner Pyledriver (GB) (Harbour Watch {Ire}), who ran a heroic second in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Vase in December, is also training with an eye toward a start in the Neom Cup. His trainers William Muir and Chris Grassick sent the 5-year-old entire out for a spin over the Kempton all-weather prior to leaving for Saudi Arabia.

“We took him to Kempton today to let him have a blow over the surface to cover a distance of ground,” Muir said. “It was just to literally get him away from home for something different and a change of scenery, to perk him up and keep him in good shape.

“The horse is in great shape. It wasn't one of those gallops you want to put a gun to his head and say 'go'. It was just to let us cover the distance.

“Martin [Dywer] rode him and when he got off he said, after riding in races there over the winter, it felt like he broke the track record.”

The La Pyle Partnership colourbearer was under consideration for the Saudi Cup itself, but connections ultimately opted for the Neom Cup on turf.

“We had a long conversation, the owners and myself, and we are aiming to go from here to the Sheema Classic in Dubai,” Muir explained. “We felt to drop him back to a mile-one on dirt and then go back up to a mile and four would be giving different signals. We know a mile and a quarter on turf is fine so we thought we'd do that and then go onto the next target.”

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