Dubai: Winning the $10 million (Dh36.7 million) Dubai World Cup, the world’s iconic and richest horse race which is run at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai every March, is the dream of every owner, trainer and jockey on the planet.
But His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, whose extraordinary vision saw the race being born in 1996, thinks differently.
“The Dubai World Cup has become a great race, the one that everybody wants to win,” Shaikh Mohammad told CNN at Meydan racecourse during Super Saturday, the official dress rehearsal for the $30 million Dubai World Cup meeting on March 26.
“We would like to win as well. But whoever wins Dubai is the eventual winner because the event would not be what it is, the success that it is, without all the international interest and participation.”
Shaikh Mohammad also took the opportunity to wish all the participants every success on the big day, which features a nine-race card of varying races and distances which will be run on Meydan’s dirt and turf surfaces.
Through his extreme passion for horses and the sport of horseracing, Shaikh Mohammad set up the all-powerful Godolphin stable, which is headquartered in Dubai and Newmarket, England. Godolphin has won the Dubai World Cup on seven occasions since 2000 with the triumph of Dubai Millennium, and most recently with African Story in 2014.
Also present at Meydan to witness the stunning victories of two of his horses, Muarrab in the Mahabl Ali Shimaal (G3) and Fityaan in the Meydan Sprint (G3), was Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance.
Speaking to the media, Shaikh Hamdan said: “Muarrab is an improved horse and enjoys his racing here in Dubai.
“He’s a good contender for the Dubai Golden Shaheen, but the competition is going to be very tough on the big night with the strong sprinters coming from America and other parts of the world. But he deserves to run in the race and we hope he does well.”
Last season, Shaikh Hamdan sent Tamarkuz to race in America following his victory in the Godolphin Mile (G2) but said he was not sure of doing the same with Muarrab as he has had a heavy season in the UAE.
Asked to name his favourite for Dubai World Cup, Shaikh Hamdan said that he believes that the race will be between 2014 Kentucky Derby winner California Chrome and Godolphin’s Frosted, the 2015 Wood Memorial (G1) and Pennsylvania Derby (G2) victor.
“There are some nice horses in the race but I think it will be between the two American horses and I think Frosted has a very good chance,” he said.
“After his campaign in the Triple Crown, Shaikh Mohammad gave instructions that Frosted be given a break with the Breeders’ Cup Classic being his last race for the season. It was a good decision because the horse came to Dubai looking fresh.
“He ran a good trial in the Al Maktoum Challenge and appeared to like the dirt track which is important. I think he’s ready to run a big race on March 26.”
Speaking about his chances of winning the race for the third time after Al Mutawakel in 1997 and Invasor in 2007, Shaikh Hamdan said: “We are hoping that Intilaaq will run well. Essentially he’s a turf horse, so it all depends on how well he can adapt to the dirt. You can never tell so we will have to wait and see. But he’s a very good horse who has won four of his five starts in Europe.”
