Dubai: The $10 million Dubai World Cup (G1) was thrown wide open after Wednesday’s post position draw yielded horrendous results for several leading fancies, while luck favoured the joint ante-post favourites, Hunter’s Light and Royal Delta.
Godolphin handler Saeed Bin Surour chose stall No 4 for Hunter’s Light, but had to settle for the dreaded No 13 outside post for his exciting prospect Kassiano. Meanwhile, African Story, his third runner in Saturday’s 2,000m contest, was left with barrier 11.
Two other Godolphin hopefuls, 2012 winner Monterosso and runner-up Capponi, will break from gates No 10 and No 5 respectively.
The draw ceremony, which took place at Meydan’s IMAX Gallery, also saw 2011 Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom drawn unfavourably in stall 12, while fellow American hopeful Royal Delta, who is bidding to become the first filly to win the contest, was handed barrier 8.
Godolphin Racing Manager Simon Crisford said: “I am pleased with the draw as regards the Godolphin horses, with the only disappointment being African Story, who we would have preferred to break from any stall between 1 and 7.
“Kassiano is widest of all in 13, but he can be dropped in as he comes from behind in his races.”
Saeed Bin Surour was also not too downbeat, saying: “I am happy enough with the draw for my horses; it is not a worry.
“All three are in very good form. Kassiano is a proven horse and he was second last time in a Group 1. He’s got a really good turn of foot, meaning he can take any position in the race, so I’m not really worried about the draw.
“If the pace is slow, I would like to see African Story or Hunter’s Light in front, but if the pace is strong, I would like to see them somewhere handy.”
Bin Surour has won the Dubai World Cup on five previous occasions, but expressed his desire to bag another trophy on Saturday.
“I am always hungry for the big races, though they are hard to win. The Dubai World Cup is the best race in the world,” he said.
The Emirati handler believes that American raider Animal Kingdom poses the biggest threat to his chances, adding: “Animal Kingdom is the one for us to beat, but we are looking for good runs from all our horses. I have a good feeling about our chances, as these are the best three I have.”
Although Animal Kingdom enjoyed no luck in the draw, Barry Irwin, founder of Team Valor, which co-owns Animal Kingdom, said: “I don’t think it’s that big of a deal.
“He’s not going to be in front anyway. He is a mid-pack horse. We just didn’t want to be inside. If we were in the 1-2-3, we would be feeling it. [Being in] 11-12-13 is not great, but not bad as well.”
Only one horse, Godolphin’s Secret Number, has won from stall 11 or lower in 69 runs on the Tapeta at Meydan this season.
History shows that horses drawn very wide have found it difficult to manoeuvre into a favourable position in a two-turn race such as the World Cup. But quite often a slow early pace often breaks up the field, allowing jockeys to slot faster horses to a preferred position.
In the three previous years at the Dubai World Cup run on Meydan’s all-weather track, Monterosso (2012) won from stall eight, Victoire Pisa (2011) from six and Gloria de Campeao (2010) from five.
Jerry Crawford, managing partner of Donegal Racing, which owns Dullahan, said of the No 3 stall that he selected for triple Grade 1 winner: “We will save a lot of ground between the start and the first turn by being where we want to be.
“I much prefer the [stall number] three. You can do the maths. If you come straight over to the rail and save every step of ground, you still have to run 40 feet [12 metres] further from [stall] 13 than the one. It’s just a case of mathematics at the end of the day.”
Marco Botti’s Planteur, third last year in the race, was drawn in stall seven, with Hong Kong Vase winner Red Cadeaux in stall two and Andrew Balding’s Side Glance in six.
With inputs from Alaric Gomes, Senior Reporter
