Bhupat Seemar’s Zabeel Stables To Relocate To Meydan

Dubai World Cup-winning trainer Bhupat Seemar is set to relocate his hugely successful Zabeel Stables to a new location at Meydan.

Seemar landed the $12-million G1 Dubai World Cup with the Juddmonte-owned Laurel River (Into Mischief), a victory that crowned a memorable season for the trainer given he landed a second UAE trainers' championship title.

However, pastures new beckon for Seemar, who explained that his large string will be better suited to the new facility. 

“To leave Zabeel with a Dubai World Cup as well as both the trainers' and jockeys' championship was the crowning glory,” the trainer told The National newspaper. 

“It was a good send-off and it was beautiful. I have spent 21 memorable years [there] but life has to move on. They are still putting in everything that we've had in Zabeel. So, there's a lot of work going on there. 

“It's going to be a wonderful facility. Green Stable is the biggest stable at Meydan. We have a large number of horses and that's the most suitable stable. I'm thankful they've offered this to us.”

 

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Radcliffe Buys $1-Million Arrogate Filly To Pace Strong Midlantic Sale

TIMONIUM, MD – With a $1-million filly leading the way, the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale concluded its two-day run at the Maryland State Fairgrounds with statistics close to its record-setting 2022 renewal.

“It was a great two days in Maryland,” Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sales Director Paget Bennett said Tuesday evening. “There was plenty of competition for the horses people wanted. The ones they want, they all go to battle on.”

At the end of Tuesday's session, 375 head sold for $34,795,500. The average was $92,788–down just 2.7% from last year's record figure of $95,391. The median was up 6.4% to $50,000.

The difference in figures was almost entirely attributable to last year's sale-record-setting $3.55-million topper, which pushed the auction to its highest-ever gross of $37,297,700.

“We almost matched the [record] gross, but last year, we had a $3.55-million horse,” Bennett said. “That was kind of what we were missing this year. So we are very happy with the results.”

From a catalogue of 603, 437 horses went through the ring. With 62 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate was 14.2%. It was 18.9% a year ago.

Bloodstock agent Kerri Radcliffe, bidding on behalf of an undisclosed client, landed the auction's top-priced offering, a $1-million daughter of the late champion Arrogate. The sale-topper was consigned by Hartley/de Renzo Thoroughbreds. Clay Shearer was the underbidder.

Radcliffe was at the top of a broad buying bench, with the top 10 lots purchased by eight different buyers at the auction which last year produced GI Kentucky Derby winner Mage (Good Magic).

“The buyers came from all over,” Bennett said. “Every year, we see new buyers and that's very rewarding. People know they can get runners here and we proved that the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs. It's very exciting for this sale to have the success on the track that we are seeing.”

Arrogate Filly Sets Off Midlantic Fireworks

A filly by Arrogate (hip 552), the most hyped horse on the sales grounds all week, delivered in the sales ring Tuesday when selling for $1 million to the bid of bloodstock agent Kerri Radcliffe, acting on behalf of an undisclosed London-based client. Radcliffe, who did her bidding while seated in the pavilion, secured the chestnut from the consignment of Hartley/de Renzo Thoroughbreds.

“She is for my new client,” Radcliffe said of the million-dollar filly. “It's JDL Capital SARL. I am not going to name the guy, but we've got horses now in England and America, mostly in America. I think I've bought eight since March. He is based in London. This is more for investment purposes and to have a bit of fun as well. This is his first foray into racing. So let's hope it's lucky for him.”

Of plans for the filly, Radcliffe said, “I'm not sure where she will go yet. So, any trainers who want to call me, they can.”

Hip 552 is out of Twixy (Mutakddim) and is a half-sister to multiple stakes winner Twixy Roll (Roll Hennessy Roll) and from the family of GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner Caleb's Posse (Posse).

“To me, she was the star of the sale,” said Radcliffe. “I saw her in January and I saw her in March and April. And I waited for her. I didn't know I was going to pay that much for her, but it's a strong sale and the good horses are making the money.”

The sale-topper worked a furlong in a co-bullet :10 flat during last week's under-tack show.

“She went in :10 and went out in :23 and change,” Radcliffe said of the work. “It doesn't get much better than that. And obviously, she is the last of the Arrogates, so it's good to get her.”

Bred by Dale Taylor, Sr., she was purchased by Randy Hartley and Dean de Renzo for $255,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“We bought her in Book 1,” Hartley recalled. “She looked just like she looked today. She's the same filly, just bigger. The reason I think we got her is because Book 1 is a hard book at Keeneland. It's all about the top pedigrees. The mare was a nice mare, but she hadn't produced a Grade I winner or anything yet. And I think the big pedigree people weren't interested. But when we saw her, she was just a filly that we had to have.”

Hartley said he had hoped to focus on buying fillies at last season's yearling sales, but that plan did not work out.

“I said at the beginning of the year, that we were basically going to be buying fillies because we felt like that was a safer market,” Hartley said. “We ended up buying just one filly because they were hard to buy. But she was the right one. From the time we bought her, we were ecstatic.”

Among Hartley and DeRenzo's partners on the filly was Rich Mendez, who owns the Miami-based music label Rich Music.

Represented by Hartley and de Renzo at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring sale, Mendez purchased a colt by Into Mischief for $1.3 million.

Now that he had both bought and sold a seven-figure juvenile, the racing newcomer was asked which was more fun.

“I think selling a million-dollar horse, I'm not going to lie,” Mendez said. “It's just the adrenaline is different. I've known this filly for seven months. I watched her grow and I got close to her. She's an amazing filly.”

Mendez admitted he had given the filly a pep talk before she went into the ring Tuesday.

“I went in her stall and I gave her my pep talk,” he said. “I told her, 'You've done good so far. Now let's go be the sale topper.' And I just sat in there [in the pavilion] and I was talking to her [as she was selling]. So that's kind of why I think selling is a little more adrenaline for me.”

Once it was pointed out that his Into Mischief colt could go on to win a Kentucky Derby in his colors, Mendez said with a smile, “Then that will be different.”

Radcliffe made three purchases for her new client at the two-day Midlantic sale. She went to $350,000 for a colt by Liam's Map (hip 127) and to $170,000 for a colt by Take Charge Indy (hip 80).

King Adds a Pair of Bullets to His Stable

Gus King, bidding alongside trainer Ron Moquett and agent Jeff Mackor, went to $510,000 to acquire a filly by Take Charge Indy (hip 361) from the De Meric Sales consignment early in Tuesday's second session of the Midlantic May sale.

“She had a good pedigree and we liked her physical, so we decided to take a shot at it,” King said after signing the ticket on the filly.

The bay juvenile is out of Perfect Paula (Songandaprayer) and is a full-sister to GIII Forward Gal S. winner Take Charge Paula. Purchased as a weanling for $100,000 at the 2021 Keeneland November sale by Tami Bobo's First Finds, she worked a furlong last week in a co-bullet :10 flat.

King admitted he had gone past his expected budget on the filly Tuesday.

“No,” he said emphatically when asked if he had planned to spend that $510,000 on the filly. “These guys talked me into it,” he said, while gesturing towards Moquett.

Later in the session, King added another colt to his racing stable when going to $325,000 for a son of Catalina Cruiser (hip 568). Consigned by LG, agent, the juvenile worked a quarter-mile last week in a co-bullet :21 2/5.

King, the owner of the Alabama-based packaging company ColorMasters LLC, has been in racing for about 15 years and currently has seven horses in training. He has been upgrading his program and recent purchases include a son of Into Mischief (hip 292) acquired at Keeneland last September for $600,000. Now named Maravich, the 2-year-old recorded a three-furlong work at Churchill Downs last Friday.

“We have some good 2-year-olds,” King said.

Asked why he has made the decision to up his buying at the horse sales, King laughed and said, “I want to win some big races.”

Seemar's World Tour Stops in Maryland

Bhupat Seemar, trainer for the Dubai-based Zabeel Stables, has been hitting the 2-year-old sales across the globe in recent months and landed this week in Maryland for the Midlantic May sale.

“We've bought through agents, but this is the first time I'm here,” said Seemar, who saddled Summer is Tomorrow (Summer Front) in the 2022 GI Kentucky Derby. “We usually go to Europe and I'm basically chasing all of these sales. I have just come from France, from Arqana, and before that I was in Newmarket for the Guineas sale. And then I am going to Ireland for another sale. I don't know what time zone I am in at the minute.”

Of the decision to make the trip to Timonium, Seemar explained, “We've got a lot of dirt racing and last year, we had a horse who qualified for the Kentucky Derby, which was amazing. This year, there is a filly for another trainer who qualified for the GI Kentucky Oaks. There is a lot of demand for 2-year-olds and a lot of demand for good dirt horses, so where else to come than to this sale because it's the only sale for 2-year-olds on the dirt.”

Seemar made his first purchase of the two-day auction when going to $150,000 to acquire a colt by Speightstown (hip 254) from the Top Line Sales consignment Monday.

“We have done exceptionally well with Speightstown,” Seemar said of the colt's appeal. “I trained [2022 G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen S. winner] Switzerland and before that, my Uncle [Satish Seemar] trained [2013 Golden Shaheen winner] Reynoldothewizard–two very, very good horses and they were both by Speightstown. When I was at Taylor Made, Speightstown himself was a yearling there. So I have a lot of affinity with him and we've had a lot of success. He's a good model, a good-looking horse. I think he fits every specification we've got.”

During Tuesday's session of the Midlantic sale, Seemar went to $85,000 for a son of Mendelssohn (hip 397) from Cary Frommer.

“We bought the Mendelssohn colt and he's out of a Curlin mare,” he said. “He's got beautiful action. He's a stamp horse, he's a very good-looking horse.”

Seemar worked as an intern at Taylor Made Farm and served a stint as an assistant to trainer Bob Baffert. He took over training duties at Zabeel Stables from his uncle last summer.

Seemar's stable of international 2-year-olds, includes a group sourced locally in Dubai at the Goffs Breeze-Up Sale in March, where client Dr. Jim Hay acquired the auction's top two lots and four of the top seven. Hay paid €543,210 for a son of Gun Runner (hip 18) and €518,519 for a son of Justify (hip 2).

“Typically we end up getting about 25 2-year-olds,” Seemar said. “I've got some really good owners and they bought a few in the Dubai sale–we bought nine over there. Dr. Jim Hay is a big international owner and he bought a few there. I've got one coming from Japan. It's going to be a big international mix of horses.”

Seemar said he was finding good opportunities at all the sales he has attended.

“To me, a good horse will sell anywhere,” he said. “If you have enough horses–I think they have 600 horses here–so you can always find value and some good diamonds in the rough from them.”

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story said that Donato Lanni was the underbidder on the Arrogate filly. He was not. We regret the error. 

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Champion O’Shea Bags A Memorable First

There was much cause for Irish celebration at Meydan on Saturday night when A Case Of You (Ire) (Hot Streak {Ire}) and Ronan Whelan shot to glory in the G1 Al Quoz Sprint for Ado McGuinness. But a victory that meant just as much for one Irish jockey was that of Switzerland (Speightstown) in the other major sprint on the card, the G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen, which provided Tadhg O'Shea with his first Group 1 winner at the age of 40.

O'Shea has not, however, been devoid of success throughout the last two decades. Very much the opposite in fact. Much of that time has been spent in the UAE, where he is the most successful jockey of all time and has been champion on nine occasions.

“It's my 20th season in Dubai and I'm hopefully on the cusp of sealing a tenth championship as I'm eight in front with two meetings to go,” says O'Shea.

Those meetings take place on Thursday and Friday, and however many more wins the jockey adds to his tally of 65 for the season, none will come close to his major success on Saturday for Bhupat Seemar.

He continues, “To ride a Group 1 winner on Dubai World Cup night was special. I haven't ridden a Group 1 winner on the Thoroughbreds and I turned 40 in February. I don't get too many chances in Group 1s so I was thinking maybe I'd missed the boat on that one, so it was very, very special and a huge performance by the horse on the night. He was beautifully prepared by Bhupat and the team at Zabeel Stables.”

The victory also sealed an impressive start to the training career of Seemar, who took over the licence from his uncle, Satish Seemar, at the start of the season.

“It's amazing,” says O'Shea. “Bhupat has been in Dubai for as long as I have and he's been assistant to his uncle for the last 19 years, so to be champion trainer in the first season with his name on the licence is quite something. I rode his first stakes winner on a horse called Tuz and now to ride him a Group 1 winner in his first year, it's been one of those pinch-yourself seasons.”

He adds, “I've never ridden as many winners here in a season, and for Bhupat, too, it's just been one of those years when everything clicked. We had the rub of the green throughout and the horses stayed extremely healthy and well and held their form from the drop of the flag until World Cup night. It's like a dream really and I don't want to wake up.”

The stable's good night at Meydan on Saturday also saw Summer Is Tomorrow (Summer Front) run second in the G2 UAE Derby behind Crown Pride (Jpn) (Reach The Crown {Jpn}). O'Shea had even more reason to be pleased with that good run as he was responsible for buying the colt at last year's Arqana Breeze-up Sale for £120,000.

“He ran a huge race,” says the rider. “He's won twice for us this season, including at the carnival, and now he's been second in the UAE Derby. I'll be totally honest, I didn't think he'd stay the distance. I bought him for the Burke family at Arqana, which was held at Doncaster last year because of Covid. I was more active at the sales because a lot of owners and Bhupat couldn't travel because of Covid restrictions, but it worked out well.”

He adds, “He breezed extremely well and he took to the sand over here like a duck to water. I suppose it does help a little bit, when you're looking at their action at the breeze-ups, to have ridden for a long time out here. That horse really grabbed for the ground and he had a knee action when he breezed. With all those things put together I recommended him to the Burke family and happily he has paid for himself though the season, culminating with a huge second in the UAE Derby on World Cup night.”

The stable will now be the beneficiary of a number of lots from the inaugural Goffs Dubai Breeze-up Sale, held on the Thursday evening before the World Cup.

“Goffs did a great job and it was fantastic that the Maktoum family organised to have the breeze-up sale in Dubai,” O'Shea says. “Bhupat ended up with seven horses from the sale with very good pedigrees. They are the next winners in waiting, hopefully, and it's hugely exciting for the horse population in Dubai. Most of the horses we get over here have started their careers elsewhere in Ireland, or the UK, or France, so it's nice for some of the trainers over here to start off with a blank canvas and to be able to give them time to acclimatise. I think the sale went down very well and I'm sure the results will come in the upcoming season.”

He continues, “It's a great week when everyone ships in and the sale has added an extra spice to it as there's people that you see at the sale that wouldn't have been here normally for World Cup week. There was a huge gathering and I think the timing was great.”

After racing in the UAE concludes this week, O'Shea, a native of Dromahane, Co Cork, heads to Qatar for the end of their season before making his annual summer trip home to Ireland.

“In years gone by I used to come back and try to ride in Ireland or the UK but I found it was a bit difficult,” he says frankly. “The lads who are there all year round, sometimes it's a struggle for them to get rides so I am under no illusion that I can get off a plane and be somewhere for two months and try to get rides. I concentrate on what's working and that's over here. I get home in the summer for seven or eight weeks. I used to call Dubai my second home but I spend longer here now than I do anywhere else.”

The first anniversary of the death of Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum passed last week, and O'Shea reflects on how much he owes to his support in the early days of his career.

“I was very fortunate that back in 2001 there were four of us fighting out the Irish champion apprentice title, and with about six weeks left in the season we were notified through our trainers that Sheikh Hamdan had kindly sponsored an all-expenses paid trip to Dubai for whoever was champion that year to work for four of his trainers,” he recalls. 

“Thankfully that was me, and he did the same next year and luckily I won it again. So that's how it all started. It's amazing the path you take in life but I've been coming even since and I rode a lot of winners for the late Sheikh Hamdan and his family, and have continued to do so for his wider family. It has been a hugely successful place for me and my family, and without Sheikh Hamdan's initial invitation I might never have come here.”

With Covid having forced the abandonment of the Dubai World Cup in 2020, and then led to few people being in attendance last year, O'Shea was thrilled to have been able to record his biggest winner in front of a bumper crowd.

He says, “As big and as mesmerising as Meydan is to look at it was great to see so many people back in the stands. We love the crowd and the supporters, they mean everything, and it was a little bit dreary through Covid times with no crowd. 

“Switzerland was the only UAE winner on the night so the local crowd really got behind him. They are great supporters, and they erupted when he walked back in.”

He continues, “The only low point of the night was my horse in the Godolphin Mile, Al Nefud (GB), who was a warm favourite, but he never felt right to me and I ended up pulling him up and it turns out that he fractured his pelvis. Thankfully he's comfortable and he will recover. But the rest of the horses all ran with great credit, finishing second and fourth in the Derby and then Switzerland winning, and we were so proud of Remorse running sixth in the World Cup. It was a great night.”

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