COMMENTARY
JANUARY 4, 2013
Dubai World Cup Carnival: Ten to Follow
by Kelsey Riley
On January 10, the annual Dubai World Cup Carnival (DWCC) will kick off at
Meydan Racecourse. With 11 weeks of racing for purses totaling more than $37
million, the DWCC — which culminates in the Dubai World Cup card on March 30 —
will attract a colorful cast of runners from around the globe. Below are a list
of 10 intriguing horses you can expect to see in action over the next three
months.
Barbecue Eddie (Stormy Atlantic–The Green Owl, by Carson City)
Owner: Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum
Breeder: Margaret Addis
Trainer: Doug Watson
American racing fans may remember nine-year-old Barbecue Eddie as a Southern
California stalwart back in 2007 and 2008, his best result on U.S. soil being a
third-place effort in the 2007 Grade 1 Ancient Title.
He was picked up by Shadwell for the 2009 Carnival, but failed to hit the
board in four tries on the dirt at the now-defunct Nad Al Sheba racecourse. The
reliable gelding, however, has since found a home on the Meydan Tapeta, winning
or placing in 11 of 18 starts over the last two years.
This season, Barbecue Eddie has shown he is no worse for his age, winning his
first two starts this term in conditions company. While many of his American
foes, including Street Boss, Lewis Michael and Benny the Bull, have long since
gone to stud, Barbecue Eddie is still plying his trade on the track. And rather
successfully, at that. While he has failed to factor in three tries in group
company at Meydan, he is a consistent handicapper who will likely be seen a lot
throughout the carnival.
Dandy Boy (Danetime–Fleet of Light, by Spectrum)
Owner: Malih Lahej Al Basti
Breeder: Az Ag Rz Emiliana Srl
Trainer: David Marnane
A one-time winner on the Meydan turf in his first visit to Dubai in 2011,
Dandy Boy returned to the carnival last year, but failed to hit the board in
three tries. He posted marked improvement, however, in the summer in England. He
won the Wokingham Stakes at Royal Ascot on June 23 before jumping into Group 1
company. He finished 11th, beaten just 4 3/4 lengths, in the Group 1 Nunthorpe
at York on August 24, and was a respectable fourth in the Group 1 Sprint Cup at
Haydock on September 8, beaten 2 3/4 lengths. The five-year-old appears to have
improved with age, and David Marnane knows how to prepare a horse for Dubai.
Freezemaster (Reset–Her Grace, by Northern Flagship)
Owner: Hippocrates Stable
Breeder: Bridsan Bloodstock
Trainer: Steven Burridge
Singapore-based trainer Steven Burridge burst onto the Dubai World Cup
Carnival scene last year, winning four of 11 starts in his first season in the
Emirates, including the listed UAE Two Thousand Guineas Trial with Dark Matter.
Therefore, it is worth looking at the quartet of runners that Burridge will
bring this year, and the most intriguing of the bunch is the six-year-old
Freezemaster. He has won four times in five starts this year, including a
victory over Singapore star filly Better Life. Better Life went on in her next
start to defeat Singapore Triple Crown winner Super Easy in the Group 1 Kranji
Mile on October 7.
Hitchens (Acclamation–Royal Fizz, by Royal Academy)
Owner: Laurence O’Kain and Paul Murphy
Breeder: Curragh Bloodstock Agency Ltd
Trainer: David Barron
Hitchens spent much of the 2012 Carnival trading places with Group 1 winner
Krypton Factor, who will be discussed later. After spending his early days
campaigning primarily in England, Hitchens ventured to Dubai for the first time
last year, and the results were encouraging. He bested Krypton Factor in the
Group 3 Al Shindagha Sprint on February 3 before finishing behind his rival in
his next two outings — a second-place effort in the Group 3 Mahab al Shimaal on
March 10, and a fourth-place finish in the Group 1 Golden Shaheen on March 31.
Hitchens returned to England for the summer and campaigned with some success,
winning the listed Chris Blackwell Memorial Hopeful Stakes at Newmarket on
August 25. He has not been seen since finishing ninth in the Sprint Cup at
Haydock on September 8.
Igugu (Galileo–Zarinia, by Intikhab)
Owner: Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum
Breeder: Kia Ora Stud
Trainer: Mike de Kock
Mike de Kock is another conditioner who must always be respected at the Dubai
World Cup Carnival, and his star attraction this year is expected to be Igugu.
The six-year-old mare, named South Africa’s Horse of the Year, has captured her
country’s two most important racing events — the Group 1 Durban July in 2011
and the Group 1 J & B Met this year. The champion trainer will also unveil a
handful of former Coolmore recruits this season, including consistent top-level
galloper Await the Dawn; last year’s Group 2 UAE Derby winner Daddy Long Legs;
and the Group 2-winning and Group 1-placed juvenile David Livingston.
Interpret (Distorted Humor–Quendom, by Interprete)
Owner: Sheikh Majid bin Mohammed al Maktoum
Breeder: Alessandro Miserocchi
Trainer: Musabah al Muhairi
A half-brother to 2006 Horse of the Year and 2007 Group 1 Dubai World Cup
winner Invasor, the five-year-old Interpret has had a late start to his career,
but has quickly begun to make up for lost time. Second in his debut over the
Meydan Tapeta on November 8, Interpret came back two weeks later to again finish
second by four lengths, this time to the highly rated Surfer (see below).
Interpret followed that effort with a 10 1/2-length victory over the dirt at
Jebel Ali on December 14.
In the Spotlight (Alnasr Alwasheek–Radiate, by Placerville)
Owner: Capt. Jamshed J. Appoo
Breeder: Poonawalla Estate Stud & Agri Farm
Trainer: Sadakshara Reuben Padmanabhan
A six-time Classic winner in her native India, In the Spotlight is one of the
most highly anticipated invaders for this year’s carnival. Because not many
Indian horses have competed internationally, it is difficult to interpret her
form, but trainer Sadakshara Reuben Padmanabhan is confident in his filly’s
abilities.
“I have no doubt about her ability to perform on the big stage,” Padmanabhan
told Gulf News. “She is not only a star of Indian racing, but she is
probably the best horse I have ever trained, and I have trained close to 150
grade or group winners. She is very special. She’s better than the horses I have
brought to Dubai before. She’s way ahead of them.”
Padmanabhan also told Gulf News that his primary concern is running
his filly on a left-handed course at Meydan for the first time. He did note,
however, that she has been training well left-handed while in quarantine. In the
Spotlight is slated for her first Dubai test in a handicap at Meydan on January
17. Her long-term goal is the Group 3 Dubai Gold Cup on the Dubai World Cup
card.
Krypton Factor (Kyllachy–Cool Question, by Polar Falcon)
Owner: Fawzi Abdulla Nass
Breeder: Lady Fairhaven
Trainer: Fawzi Abdulla Nass
Owner/trainer Fawzi Nass experienced a banner year in 2012, largely due to
the exploits of Krypton Factor. After a reasonably useful Meydan campaign in
2011 — where he went winless in six tries, but placed three times — Krypton
Factor came back stronger than ever last year as a four-year-old. He kicked off
2012 as a 100-rated Group 3-placed horse, and five starts later he was a
117-rated Group 1 winner, taking the Golden Shaheen on the March 31 Dubai World
Cup card. That marked the first victory at the highest level for Nass, who also
stables runners in England and his homeland of Bahrain. In total, Krypton Factor
recorded three wins and two second-place finishes in five starts at last year’s
Carnival. If his consistency carries over, he should be a force to be reckoned
with this winter.
Maritimer (Stormy Atlantic–Highland Mood, by Highland Ruckus)
Owner: Ramzan Kadyrov
Breeder: Howard Walton
Trainer: Seth Benzel
Canada’s 2011 champion two-year-old male, Maritimer was sold to Ramzan
Kadyrov prior to the start of the 2012 Dubai World Cup Carnival. He made just
one start in the Emirates, finishing a dismal 11th of 14 in the UAE Derby for
trainer Herman Brown, and was subsequently returned to North America and
transferred to Seth Benzel. The strapping dark bay finished fifth after
traveling wide and tiring in his reappearance in the Grade 2 Autumn going 1 1/16
miles at Woodbine on November 10.
Surfer (Distorted Humor–Surf Club, by Ocean Crest)
Owner: Zabeel Racing International
Breeder: Darley
Trainer: Satish Seemar
Surfer, who made his first five starts in England as a juvenile in 2011, last
year earned himself the not-so-proud distinction as the highest-rated maiden in
racing. Kicking off the 2012 Carnival with a rating of 99, Surfer quickly rose
through the ranks while competing on the all-weather at Meydan. A fourth-place
effort while wide throughout in the Group 3 UAE Two Thousand Guineas saw his
rating climb to 102, and he justified that number next out when finishing second
in the listed Al Bastakiya — the local prep for the UAE Derby — after yet
another heartbreaking wide trip. Although he shot up to 106 off that run, it was
not enough to get him into the UAE Derby.
Surfer justified the confidence of his connections, however, by breaking his
maiden in his first start of the 2012-2013 season at Meydan on November 22 when
dropped back to the company of non-winners for the first time since September
2011. The half-brother to crack U.S. sprinter Emcee came back to record a double
on December 20 in a conditions stakes at Meydan, and as a four-year-old at the
2013 Dubai World Cup Carnival, he looks to have a world of potential.