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Plum Draws For American Saudi Cup Challengers

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia—Pegasus World Cup and Breeders' Cup Mile winner Knicks Go (Paynter) will jump from gate five in Saturday's $20 million Saudi Cup, with key rival Charlatan (Speightstown) also drawn well in nine. Splitting the two in gate seven is Tacitus (Tapit), one of two horses in the 14-runner field to be starting in the world's richest race for the second time.

Commenting on the first international runner for the Brad Cox stable, the trainer's assistant and Knicks Go's track rider Dustin Dugas, said, “We like it, it's right in the middle. He's a speed horse, it's a long way until they get to the turn. Joel [Rosario, jockey] will have a lot of ground to work at before he gets to the turn.”

Bob Baffert's assistant Jimmy Barnes was similarly pleased with Charlatan's position. “I spoke to Bob earlier and he said anything, six, seven, eight or nine would be perfect,” Barnes commented. “The one-turn mile and an eighth would just be perfect.”

Bill Mott's assistant Neil Poznansky is the daily rider of Tacitus, who was fifth in the inaugural Saudi Cup. He said of the 5-year-old, “He doesn't run a bad race. He has Johnny V [Velazquez] on him and he has the whole backside to work a trip on him.”

Last year's G1 Prix du Jockey Club winner Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}) leads the European challengers and he will jump from stall 11 under David Egan, one outside the Bahrain Trophy winner Simsir (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), trained in Bahrain by Fawzi Nass.

Thady Gosden, assistant trainer to his father John, said of Mishriff (IRE), who was runner-up in last year's Saudi Derby before his French Classic success, “It's fantastic to be here at the Saudi Cup meeting and to bring him back here for the second time. It's a really top-class race this year. We were hoping for a fairly wide draw. The American horses have far more gate speed than ours, so we're very happy with that.”

Gosden will also saddle Global Giant (GB) (Shamardal), drawn six, for Isa Salman Al Khalifa of Al Adiyat Racing. Speaking at the draw, the Bahraini owner said “He has been improving with every start but he would have to run the race of his life to be competitive. It is an honour to be involved. The two winners for Bahrain at last year's Saudi Cup was the highlight of my racing life so far.”

Completing the quintet of American-trained runners in the race, Steve Asmussen's representative Max Player (Honor Code) was handed gate four, while Sleepy Eyes Todd (Paddy O'Prado) is in eight.

The sole Japanese runner, the Ryuji Okubo-trained Chuwa Wizard (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) has the inside draw, one in from King Power Racing's Bangkok (Ire) (Australia {GB}) for the Andrew Balding stable. At the other end of row and widest of all is Imad Al Sagar's runner Extra Elusive (GB) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}). Trained by Roger Charlton, the 6-year-old is the partner of Hollie Doyle, who becomes the first woman to ride in the Saudi Cup.

Saudi trainer Abdullah Mushrif has two chances in the race: Great Scot (GB) (Requinto {Ire}) lines up for the second time in stall three, and reserve Derevo (GB) (Dansili {GB}) in 13. The Musabbah Al Mheiri-trained Military Law (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) completes the set in gate 10.

The post Plum Draws For American Saudi Cup Challengers appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Classic Hero Mishriff Returns To Riyadh

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia—The world is a much different place 12 months on from the inaugural Saudi Cup meeting when the full horror of the Coronavirus crisis was only beginning to become apparent. So many of racing's key events have been disrupted since then and, with many countries still in lockdown or under severe travel restrictions, it is no small wonder that this year's meeting is able to proceed, even though the attendance will be markedly reduced from last year.

Eschewing the obvious travel complications, a posse of 27 European-trained horses has descended on the Arabian desert ahead of the second running of the Saudi Cup at Riyadh's King Abdulaziz Racecourse. Along with a team of local runners, they have been joined by strong contingents from America and Bahrain, and five horses from Japan. A further eight runners from the Godolphin battalions currently wintering in Dubai will ship into town on Wednesday and the scene will be set for round two of the newest major international race meeting on the circuit.

The European raiders feature a Classic winner among them—last year's Prix du Jockey Club victor Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}), who is in Riyadh for the second time, having been runner-up in last year's Saudi Derby. His presence will no doubt delight his Saudi owner/breeder, Prince A A Faisal, whose contribution to European racing is immense, not least as breeder of the perennially popular stallions and half-brothers Kodiac (GB) and Invincible Spirit (Ire). Their dam, another French Classic-winning homebred, Rafha (GB) (Kris {GB}), also appears as the third dam of Mishriff, who is by the Prince's Poule d'Essai des Poulains winner Make Believe. Mishriff's half-brother Momkin (Ire) (Bated Breath {GB}) is also set to race in the stc 1351 Turf Sprint on Saturday's undercard for Saudi trainer Abdullah Mushrif.

Mishriff's trainer John Gosden is represented in Riyadh by his son Thady, who said after watching the colt exercise with the stable's fellow Saudi Cup runner Global Giant (GB) (Shamardal), “It's wonderful for Prince Faisal to have a runner in the Saudi Cup. He puts a huge amount into the sport and takes a lot of time over his horses and cares about them deeply. He's very passionate and it's brilliant for him to have a horse who is a Classic winner and is now coming back to his home country to hopefully run well in the big race.”

He continued, “It was bottomless ground on Champions Day for Mishriff's final run of last year but he had a little break and has been training well since he started back. He's in good form. He knows his way around here a bit and he handles the dirt well. It's a brilliant track here—obviously Mishriff is a turf horse but he handles it well.”

Isa Salman Al Khalifa's Global Giant comes into the Saudi Cup from his second-place finish in the Bahrain Trophy and he will reoppose the winner of that race, Simsir (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}). The latter is trained by Fawzi Nass, who was successful at last year's meeting with Port Lions (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}).

Gosden added, “Global Giant went over to Bahrain and ran very well there. The race didn't quite go to plan as he broke a little bit slowly and was finishing well late on but wasn't quite able to peg back the leader. He's in good form, too. He had a little break over the winter but seems very well in himself.”

The Gosden stable's runner in this year's Al Rajhi Bank Saudi Derby, run over a mile, is New Treasure (Ire). The Jim Bolger-bred son of New Approach (Ire) won last year's G3 Heider Family Stables Round Tower S. before being sold to Saudi-based Nads Stud at Tattersalls for 90,000gns and transferred to Newmarket.

The $1 million Saudi Derby has also drawn an international line-up. New Treasure's fellow Newmarket trainee Albadri (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) races for Australian-born Jane Chapple-Hyam, while Charlie Appleby and Saeed Bin Suroor field the unbeaten Rebel's Romance (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and wide-margin UAE 1000 Guineas winner Soft Whisper (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) for Godolphin. Francis Graffard has sent recent Chantilly winner Homeryan (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) from France, and Japan, America and the UAE are also represented.

When Oxted (GB) emulated his sire Mayson (GB) by winning last year's G1 Darley July Cup it proved to be one of the most popular results of the disrupted season. The 5-year-old has run just once since then, when fifth in the QIPCO British Champions Sprint, and he enters new territory on Saturday in the Saudi Arabian Airlines Riyadh Dirt Sprint.

Oxted's trainer Roger Teal and his wife Sue stepped off a Saudi Arabian Airlines flight at 3.45am on Tuesday and, after completing the Covid tests obligatory within the Saudi Cup 'event bubble', came straight to the track to see their stable star canter under their son Harry.

“It's his first try on dirt and his first time round a bend so that's lots of firsts. Hopefully there will be another first come Saturday,” said Teal, who said he was delighted with the way Oxted had coped with his debut international flight. “He travelled really well on the plane and that was really good to hear as he's not even been overnight racing at home so it's a lot to take in.”

Former jockey Harry Teal, who now assists his father at their Lambourn stable, was also having his first spin on a dirt track and gave his mount the thumbs-up. He said,”Oxted had his first morning out on the track and he loved it. He felt great, moved really well on the dirt and handled the bend well. It was like a carpet out there.”

Chasemore Farm's Brad The Brief (GB) (Dutch Art {GB}), trained by Tom Dascombe, and Harry's Bar (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}), one of two runners at the meeting for Ireland's Adrian McGuinness, will also be tested on the dirt for the first time in the 1,200-metre contest.

Following a year when many of the world's most valuable prizes suffered cuts in purse money while so much of the action was conducted behind closed doors, the already well endowed Saudi Cup meeting has increased in value from $29.2 million to €30.5 million. It is preceded on Friday by the International Jockeys' Challenge with a 14-strong line-up of top riders that includes last season's first-time Group 1 winners Hollie Doyle and Jessica Marcialis.

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Likely Saudi Cup Day Fields Include 77 Contenders From Overseas

The likely runners for the two-day Saudi Cup meeting on February 19-20 have been announced, with 15 individual Group or Grade 1 winners set to line up.

In total, the King Abdulaziz Racecourse in Riyadh will host 77 overseas contenders representing 13 different countries from around the world who between them have won 24 Group or Grade 1 contests.

The highlight of the meeting is the $20 million Saudi Cup, and the second staging of the world's most valuable race looks set to feature another crop of star names.

The field could be headed by Brad Cox's Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile and Pegasus World Cup winner Knicks Go (USA), who is part of a strong American contingent which includes Grade 1 Malibu Stakes winner Charlatan (USA) and Tacitus (USA), returning for a second tilt at the race and owned by Juddmonte Farms.

Ryuji Okubo's impressive Grade 1 Champions Cup winner Chuwa Wizard (JPN) represents Japan, while John Gosden is likely to saddle Mishriff (IRE) who was second in the Al Rajhi Bank Saudi Derby at this meeting 12 months ago.

A host of other top-class horses look likely to take their spots in Riyadh, with Freddy Head's four-time Group 1 winner Call The Wind (GB) seeking back-to-back victories in the $2.5m Red Sea Turf Handicap, alongside last year's third Prince Of Arran (GB), trained by Charlie Fellowes.

Both the 1200m $1.5m SAUDIA Riyadh Dirt Sprint and $1m stc 1351 Turf Sprint have also attracted a host of well-regarded types.

Group 1 July Cup winner Oxted (UK), trained in the UK by Roger Teal, looks all set to run in the SAUDIA Riyadh Dirt Sprint, where he could take on Yoshito Yahagi's Justin (JPN) – the earner of an automatic spot in the race after winning the Grade 3 Capella Stakes in December.

The stc 1351 Turf Sprint is another race that has attracted a strong field, with last year's winner Dark Power (IRE), trained in Bahrain by Allan Smith, back to defend his crown. He'll face a strong challenge again this time around with Charlie Appleby's Space Blues (IRE), the winner of his last four races, including most recently in the Group 1 Prix Maurice de Gheest, as well as Joseph O'Brien's Speak In Colours (GB) both expected to line up.

Bill Mott's Channel Maker (CAN), last seen finishing third to Tarnawa in the Breeders' Cup Turf, is the likely star name in the 2100m $1m Neom Turf Cup, a field which also includes Gronkowski (USA), now trained by Abdulaziz Khalid in Saudi Arabia.

The Purebred Arabian runners in the 2000m $2m Obaiya Arabian Classic are headlined by the Group 1-winning Messi (BEL), trained by Timo Keersmaekers in Belgium, who will clash with last year's winner Tallaab Al Khalediah (KSA), trained locally by Mutlaq Bin Mushref.

This year's Saudi Cup meeting also sees the addition of a new race, the $500k Al Rajhi Bank International Handicap, which is specifically aimed at horses trained in IFHA Part II or Part III countries, and is run on Friday 19 February on stc International Jockeys' Challenge day.

There are horses entered from six different countries, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Spain, the Czech Republic and Greece.

Tom Ryan, Director of Strategy and International Racing for the Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia, said:

“We were very excited when we saw the entry list for the second staging of The Saudi Cup and now we know the likely fields, we really are delighted.

“A battle between the likes of Knicks Go, Charlatan, Mishriff and Chuwa Wizard in The Saudi Cup would be a huge thrill, while the strength and quality of all the other races has really stood up.

“The entire team are working incredibly hard to deliver a world class event where the health and safety of all participants is paramount. It has obviously been an difficult year for everyone and we are glad that we are able to put on this meeting for racing fans all over the world to enjoy.”

For a list of where you can watch the Saudi Cup from home, please visit www.thesaudicup.com.sa and click “Where to watch”.

Download possible runners and past performances: https://thesaudicup.com.sa/page/Races

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Gosden To Saddle French Classic Winner Mishriff In Saudi Cup, Hopes For Wide Draw

Trainer John Gosden has his sights set on the $20 million Saudi Cup with last year's Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club hero Mishriff. The 4-year-old was runner-up in The Saudi Derby – run on the same dirt track as the world's most valuable race – at the inaugural meeting last year, before returning to Europe to complete a summer hat-trick of big-race wins.

Gosden, based in Newmarket, said at a Saudi Cup press conference: “Mishriff has always been a grand horse and he worked nicely going into The Saudi Derby last year. It was his first time on the dirt, so you never know but he did have the benefit of a wide draw.

“I think he's very much a 2000m (1 1/4 miles) horse – he's got a great stride, great tactical speed and a powerful finish. This is 1800m (1 1/8 miles) and, if you remember from last year, the American horses break – that's their game.

“They're very fast over the first 400m (half mile) and you really don't want to be getting in behind all of that. If you get a basin full of dirt in your face, that's what stops turf horses switching to the dirt as they're not used to taking all that kickback. That's why a wide draw would be advantageous.

“He's not a horse who requires a massive amount of work so, to that extent, he's the right type to be getting ready so early in the year.”

Gosden, who is also planning to send Global Giant over to run in the $1million Middle Distance Turf Cup and New Treasure in the $1.5million Saudi Derby on Feb. 20, was suitably impressed with the first Saudi Cup meeting last year.

He said: “The horses were looked after properly in every way – the facilities were great. The main track is exceptional – the American jockeys always say it's the best they ride on anywhere – and the turf course completely blew me away, it was stunning. We all had a superb experience.”

British trainer Roger Teal will run last year's July Cup winner Oxted on dirt for the first time in the $1.5million Riyadh Dirt Sprint.

He said: “He looks magnificent – he's really blossomed throughout the winter. His work has been stepping up weekly and we're very happy. He's got early pace – he travels strongly. It was a strongly-run race last year and that will suit him. We're hoping we'll be allowed to take him to Wolverhampton to have one good sprint around a turn as he's never raced around a bend.”

Dark Power, shock winner of last year's $1million 1351 Turf Sprint under Frankie Dettori, is expected to defend his crown for Bahrain trainer Allan Smith.

Smith said: “He finished third in his prep race last week but it was over a straight 1200m and he couldn't get much cover. After that he's pretty much spot on. I shall have a quiet word with Frankie but I'm almost sure the 'Italian Stallion' will be on board again.”

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