The show must go on. At least that’s the plan, even though many of the players will be no-shows. Despite the war in the Middle East, there are no plans to cancel the $12 million Dubai World Cup (G1) on March 28.
The 30th running of the 1¼-mile race is the centerpiece of a $30.5 million, multi-stakes extravaganza at palatial Meydan Racecourse.
In a news release on March 11, the Dubai Racing Club said: “Preparations continue as planned, and we look forward to welcoming guests and the racing community for the event.”
On Friday, March 13, a nearby missile strike (reportedly “a few miles away”) triggered an alert that forced Meydan to halt the final card of the Dubai Racing Carnival after the first race. Twenty-two minutes after spectators were told to seek shelter under the grandstand, it was announced that racing would resume. The program was completed without further delays.
Starting Feb. 28, bombs and drones have caused injuries and damage in the United Arab Emirates, including at Dubai International Airport, located about seven miles from Meydan. The U.A.E. and Iran are separated by only 35 miles across the Strait of Hormuz, now a battleground because of its strategic importance as a conduit for oil shipping.
The constant danger convinced many owners to have their horses skip the trip. At least 11 Japanese runners, including turf standout Danon Decile, are staying home. Danon Decile won’t have a chance to defend his title in the $6 million Dubai Sheema Classic (G1).
American champion sprinter Book’em Danno also defected. “We had planned on going to Dubai, but that’s out of the question now,” trainer Derek Ryan told drf.com. “All the arrangements had already been made, but we had to pull the plug.”
The $1 million UAE Derby (G2), a qualifying event for the Kentucky Derby (G1), will be without Itterasshai. Trainer Makoto Saito said, “We won’t be going to Dubai. We can’t send the horse or our staff to a dangerous place.”
(In a weird coincidence, itterasshai is a Japanese phrase meaning “please go and come back safely.”)
Others adopted a “wait and see” attitude, but some decided to take their chances. Defending World Cup winner Hit Show, Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) champion Bentornato, and Clark Stakes (G2) winner Magnitude arrived in Dubai on a Saturday flight from Miami.
Already there is Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) hero Forever Young, who showed up after his Saudi Cup (G1) triumph on Feb. 14. So did fifth-place Saudi Cup finisher Banishing, a World Cup entrant, and Reef Runner, a contender in the $1.5 million Al Quoz Turf Sprint (G1) on the World Cup undercard.
Alex Lieblong and his wife, JoAnn, bred and own Reef Runner, a 5-year-old gelding who won the $2 million 1351 Turf Sprint (G2) on Saudi Cup Day for Florida-based trainer David Fawkes. The Lieblongs were there at King Abdulaziz Racecourse to celebrate with Fawkes and jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr.
On last week’s TDN Writers’ Podcast, Lieblong said he and JoAnn, residents of Arkansas, plan to attend the World Cup.
“I think they’ll run it,” Lieblong said, “because I think there’s politics at play and there’s egos at play.”
The biggest of those egos belongs to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ruler and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, and arguably the most powerful person in horse racing.
The founder of international behemoth Godolphin Racing created the Dubai World Cup in the mid-Nineties to showcase his nation to the world. His brainchild has been a tremendous success since its inception. It was called off in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Sheikh would not want to have to cancel again.
“He’s done such a tremendous job with it,” Lieblong said. “Who would have thought Dubai could do this? It’s just amazing.”
Lieblong hopes the World Cup is on.
“We’re going to go if they open up the airspace,” he said. “The other night, when I told my wife that I would go alone, she said no, that if I was going, she was going, too. But one of our granddaughters thinks I’m nuts for even considering it at my age.
“But I said 75 is the time to take chances. At 75 years old, you don’t want to leave too much on the table.”
Ed McNamara is an award-winning racing writer who has covered the sport since 1981 for The Bergen (N.J.) Record, Newsday, ESPN, Thorocap, and USRacing. He is the author of Cajun Racing: From the Bush Tracks to the Triple Crown and Racing Around the World, and a contributor to The Most Glorious Crown and The Racetracks of America. He has also written for racing publications in France and Italy.
