Money, money, money, always funny, in a rich man’s world!! And there are bagfuls of it on offer at the King Abdulaziz Racetrack in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The gates for the Saudi Cup, the flagship event of the 2-day Festival, ping open at 17:40 (GMT) this Saturday.
First run in 2020, it’s the richest horse race on the planet. For the 4th edition, there is a staggering £15 million fund, with the winner picking up a cool £7.875 million. In what is a truly global event ,14 horses go to post. Five from the USA, four from Japan and five home-based Saudi runners.
Embed from Getty ImagesStill Waiting For A Pegasus World Cup Winner To Swoop To Victory
The Saudi Cup was purposely positioned to take place at the end of February each year. It comes a month after the Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park and a month before the Dubal World Cup. Therefore, making it possible in theory for horses to run in all three prestigious and highly lucrative races. No horse is yet to win more than one of those races in the same year, despite numerous attempts.
All previous Pegasus World Cup winners have failed to finish in the Saudi Cup frame. Gulfstream stars, Mucho Gusto (2020) and Knicks Go (2021) fared the best, both finishing 4th in Riyadh. Three of the first four home in last month’s ‘Pegasus’ have headed to Saudi Arabia this week. All three will be racing overseas for the first time. Bob Baffert’s National Treasure held off the fast-finishing Senor Buscador by a neck that day in Florida. Hoist The Gold was 10 lengths further back in 4th.
Embed from Getty ImagesNational Treasure Or National Trickster?
The Pegasus win was a welcome relief for National Treasure connections. They had seen the colt narrowly beaten in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile last November. It was up and down 2023 campaign for the Baffert trainee. His Preakness Stakes victory was the highlight, but he threw in a few disappointing runs when fancied. Only finishing 6th in the Belmont Stakes for one. Senor Buscador impressed many with his late surge at Gulfstream, but it was his sixth race without a win. That reluctance to get his head in front, may put some punters off.
Bob Baffert will be praying that National Treasure finally sees him crack the Saudi Cup conundrum. The legendary Hall Of Fame trainer has heartbreakingly seen his runners finish second in the previous three runnings. Charlatan in 2021 & Country Grammar in both 2022 & 2023. Heartbroken may be a bit strong, as finishing second doesn’t leave connections penniless of course. The second placed horse this year will pick up a pretty decent sum of £2.7 million!! That wait for a win will be bugging Baffert though. It will mean the world to him if he can add the Saudi Cup to his list of major wins.
Embed from Getty ImagesCan White Abarrio Justify Saudi Cup Favourtism?
Breeders’ Cup Classic winner, White Abarrio, tops the bookies’ boards as favourite for the big race. He held off Japan’s best Saudi hope, Derma Sotogake, to claim the honours at Santa Anita in November. It backed up his Whitney Stakes success and is the first time he has bagged consecutive wins since April 2022.
There are a few question marks regarding his chances. He is another one of the US raiders who is yet to race overseas. He has also been handed a tough rail draw in the No.1 box. Saudi Cup favourites have also had a tough time of it, with none placed in the previous three renewals. With Irad Ortiz Jr. though, they have one of the best riders on the globe on board. The Puerto Rican star recently captured his 5th Eclipse Award for being the outstanding jockey of the year.
Embed from Getty ImagesDon’t Dismiss The Japanese Raiders
As well as Breeders Cup Classic runner-up, Derma Sotogake, the Japanese raiders include Ushba Tesoro, Lemon Pop & Crown Pride. Could one follow in Panthalassa’s hoofsteps, who pulled off a shock 2023 win for the land of the rising sun? Derma Sotogake’s Santa Anita performance was even more impressive as it came after a 182-day layoff. Will he use his previous Middle East experience to his advantage? He stormed to a 5 ½ length triumph in the UAE Derby at Meydan less than a year ago.
Ushba Tesoro, the oldest horse in the line-up, was also an eye-catching winner on his only previous Middle East trip. He swooped to victory in the 2023 Dubai World Cup. Unlike Derma Sotogake & Ushba Tesoro, Lemon Pop disappointed at Meydan last March. Though the vet stated there were underlying issues and he wasn’t striding properly. It was his only finish out of the top-2 in 14 runs.
Embed from Getty ImagesCan Any Of The Home-based Saudi Runners Compete?
Isolate and Defunded look to be two of the most interesting Saudi runners in the Saudi Cup line-up. Isolate moved to Doug Watson’s Dubai yard from the States at the start of 2023. Despite an iffy first couple of starts at Meydan, he hit form in his last two 2023 outings there. Winning both the Godolphin Mile & Al Maktoum Mile at the Dubai track.
Defunded is making his first appearance since swapping stables from Bob Baffert to Abdulaziz K Mishref in February. His last outing for Baffert was in the Awesome Again Stakes at Santa Anita in October. Run over the Saudi Cup distance, he would finish second, but in front of both Senor Buscador & National Treasure. Defunded looks to be better drawn (Gate 9) than Isolate (Gate 2) for Saturday’s feature at Riyadh. The King Abdulaziz dirt track often favours horses racing well off the rail.
As mentioned, White Abarrio, drawn right next to the rail, may also struggle. Especially as he hasn’t got an early kick. He may look to get a pull through from Isolate drawn next door. As he tends to race from the front end. The final US raider, Saudi Crown, is also an early speedster. He ‘made all’ when securing all his three wins to date, the last at Fair Grounds in January. Could he go wire-to-wire as Panthalassa did last year?
All Saturday’s races from Riyadh are live on RacingTV from 12:00 (GMT). The one we are all waiting for, the Saudi Cup, due off at 17:40. Keep up with today’s horse racing results via Racing Post.
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Image Credit: Deposit Photos