Meydan Overview & Selections – Week 1:
The Dubai International Carnival is back. Over the next few months, we will be treated to top-class international racing on the dirt and turf. The Carnival this year is slightly reduced in terms of the number of meetings but it will not be short on quality as we work our way towards Dubai World Cup night in late March.
The beauty of the Carnival is that we get to see a pool of horses regularly trying to stake their claim for a post position on World Cup night and we become familiar, not just with the horses, but with their handlers and the stories therein.
It is an amazing Carnival and it all gets under way on Thursday with the ever popular Al Maktoum Challenge taking centre stage.
9:30am ET Meydan: Rio Angie
The first race of this year’s Carnival provides us with a competitive handicap on the dirt over seven furlongs. Early pace on the surface is crucial at Meydan and Rio Angie has it in spades. She easily landed a handicap here in November at a domestic meeting, recording a fast time in the process. She breaks from stall 9, which is wide enough, but her blistering early pace should see her lead on the rail after a furlong or so and thereafter she could take some pegging back. On the face of it, she looks to be the second string from the Doug Watson yard with stable jockey Pat Dobbs riding Golden Goal. However, Sam Hitchcott rode her to success in November and it is probably just a case of keeping the partnership intact.
10:40am ET Meydan: Gladiator King
Gladiator King took well to racing at Meydan last year, winning both of his starts before running really well when third in Saudi Arabia in the Saudi Sprint. He has solid form claims, plus a good draw in stall 3. His trainer, Satish Seemar, has a sure touch with sprinters, as he showed with the legend that is Reynaldothewizard, and...