Dubai: Norway’s first carnival winner Avon Pearl in the 1600 metre tapeta handicap last month has compatriot Niels Petersen dreaming of the country’s first World Cup night win with Beat Baby in the Al Quoz Sprint at Meydan this Saturday.
The seven-year-old gelding has been placed in eight of his last nine races, finishing second in a handicap race before a rogue 10th place finish in the G3 Meydan Sprint earlier this month. Off the back of debut Norwegian success for Haugen, Petersen feels there’s more to come for Scandinavia.
“The quality is definitely growing in Norway but quantity is not following,” said Petersen. “We have one course and maybe 350-400 horses in training. But hopefully from our performances here, more Norwegian owners might purchase better horses and get us in a better position.
“It’s a very big deal for us to have a runner here. Unfortunately, I had one that broke its leg in the Dubai Derby [Timely Jazz in 2010]. That wasn’t the best of experiences but it’s nice to be back and there’s a lot of attention on us at home so hopefully having a runner brings the racing there forward.”
Petersen said the secret for recent Norwegian success in Dubai could be as a result of a mild winter. “The problem for us is that we come down in our off season and have to come to terms with horses in their mid season,” he added. “We haven’t previously been able to complete at the same level. But this year we’ve come down with better conditions at home, which has put our horses more in the frame and we’ve had a few good runners.
“Honestly, I hope that we can pick up some money, if we do that I’d be delighted. It’s a tough race with a lot of speed. But it’s been raining and a little bit more rain wouldn’t harm his chances.”
