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Close to 900 horses nominated for Dubai World Cup meeting

Trained by Bob Baffert, Country Grammer will bid to become only the second horse in UAE racing history to defend the 2,000 dirt contest

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Frankie Dettori rides Country Grammer to victory in the 2022 Dubai World Cup. — KT file

By Leslie Wilson Jr

Published: Fri 3 Feb 2023, 10:01 PM

Reigning Emirates Dubai World Cup champion Country Grammer heads a 171-strong list of horses who have been nominated for the 27th edition of the $12 million showpiece at Meydan Racecourse on March 26.

Trained by Bob Baffert, Country Grammer will bid to become only the second horse in UAE racing history to defend the 2,000 dirt contest following Godolphin’s Thunder Snow who triumphed in 2018-2019.

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Baffert, a Hall of Fame handler from Santa Anita Park in the US and a four-time winner of the Dubai World Cup, has also nominated dual Group 1 scorer Taiba.

Both Country Grammer and Taiba are owned by Zedan Racing Stables owned by Saudi Arabian businessman and prolific horse owner, Amr F Zedan.

Taiba is the winner of the Malibu Stakes and Pennsylvania Derby.

Also among the exciting list of entries is Friday’s Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 victor Algiers.

With millions in prize money of $30.5m up for grabs, the Dubai World Cup is one of the most prestigious race meetings in the world.

The Group 1 Dubai World Cup, which was first run in 1996, has been won in the past by some of the equine greats like Cigar, Dubai Millennium, Curlin and Arrogate.

The Dubai World Cup is the centerpiece of a glittering nine-race card that illustrates the depth of UAE racing as it includes some of the most competitive races on the planet on both turf and dirt.

Keeping that in mind, connections from around the world have nominated as many as 892 horses, up from 750 in 2022, for the nine races.

The total nominations are 1,609 according to the Dubai Racing Club which manages horse racing at Meydan Racecourse, the UAE’s flagship venue for the sport.

Over 21 countries have nominated contenders including the USA, Uruguay, UK, UAE, Turkey, Spain, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Norway, Japan, Ireland, Hong Kong, Germany, France, Canada, Czech Republic, Bahrain, Australia and Argentina.

Two dirt races, each worth a staggering $6 million in prizemoney, the Dubai Sheema Classic over 2410 metres, and the Dubai Turf over 1800 metres, have also been well supported.

The Dubai Sheema Classic, which regularly attracts the best grass performers from Japan and Europe, has drawn 161 nominations while the Dubai Turf, which last year produced a thrilling dead heat between Panthalassa and Lord North, has earned 247 entries.

The world’s sprinters have a chance to vie for glory on different surfaces, the G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen, over 1200 metres on dirt, and in the G1 Al Quoz Sprint, over 1200 metres on turf.

As many as 178 speedballs will bid for a place in the starting gates for the Golden Shaheen while 196 are hoping to get into the Al Quoz Sprint on dirt.

The card also welcomes stayers, with the Group 2 Dubai Gold Cup, over 3200 metres on turf, one of the longest and most popular races of the meeting with 107 entries having been received by the Dubai Racing Club.

Meanwhile, the G2 UAE Derby, which also offers 100 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the winner, received a healthy 204 nominations.

The G2 Godolphin Mile, over 1600 metres on dirt, is the first Thoroughbred race on the card and is a very popular contest that can be judged by the level of interest worldwide with 266 entries submitted.

The curtain raiser for the meeting is the G1 Dubai Kahayla Classic, for Purebred Arabians, over 2000 metres on dirt, and 78 of the breeds have been nominated for the 2023 renewal.

Leslie Wilson Jr

Published: Fri 3 Feb 2023, 10:01 PM

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