Yes, it’s fun while it lasts. The $12 million Dubai World Cup (G1), which will take place this Saturday, March 25, for its 27th time, has been the only place for the best representatives of the American breed for a long time. life. This list of horses that have made the journey from US ports to the tiny Persian Gulf/Arabian emirate is like a starter kit for a modern hall of fame, starting with Poker. chicken and including more recent california chrome , Superior And gunman .
In between they have come, seen and many of them have been conquered, including Silver Charm, Pleasantly Perfect, Captain Steve, Animal Kingdom May Roses, Invaders, make for curly And well armed —all of them (with the exception of Sheikh Hamdan’s Invaders) are owned by very American interests and are coached by familiar names based in the US.
Realize any of these? All the US big-stakes winners, all of whom appeared from 1996 to 2009 in the desert, follow full American entourages eager to taste exotic Dubai: Soul of the Matter, L’Carriere, Siphon, Sandpit, Formal Gold, Malek, Behrens, Victory Gallop, Puerto Madero, Aptitude, Harlan’s Holiday, Medaglia d’Oro Congratulations, Brass Hats and Fire Squad, among others.
Then came Meydan’s debut in 2010 and the World Cup’s five-year courtship with synthetic surfaces. At first, Americans were the game. champion royal plain And Gio Ponti tried the Tapeta World Cup, as well as Games On Dude , Richard’s Son , farthest land , Flying down And Dullahan , all of which are major U.S. equity winners. But after four years of disappointment, the 2014 World Cup had no American athletes in attendance.
In 2015, Meydan returned to normal life, resulting in the presence of not only California Chrome, Gun Runner and Arrogate but also the US invaders over the next few years. meadow , Hoppertunity , blur , Ice Keen , Mshawish , new stone , West Bank , Mubtaahij , Forever unrestrained , Pavel , Gunnevera , listen , Soul search And yoshida .
The 2020 World Cup festival is canceled at the 11th hour due to Covid-19 concerns. There were a number of American horses that were on the scene, which left a sour taste in some people’s mouths, and rightfully so. When the World Cup resumes in 2021, US involvement is minimal. Correct, mystical guide won for Michael Stidham, but the winning color was Godolphin blue of the home team. The only other delivery person of 2021 from the US is the 3rd place winner Title is ready .
However, Americans tend to forgive, if not forget. The field for the 2022 World Cup is a strong group consisting of winners, national grammar with life is good , Charlie’s Hot Stick And Midnight Bourbon . That was the shade of the late 1990s.
Country Grammer ahead of this year’s Dubai World Cup at Meydan Racecourse
This year, however, the World Cup stadium is dominated by half a dozen Japanese athletes, rushing to fill the void left by a lack of interest from the American and European stables. (By contrast, Japan has sent a single horse to the World Cup in the past two years.) As for flying the stars and stripes, only the multicultural National Grammer, the reigning World Cup champion, came. from an American Stable and representing not only the Commonwealth of Kentucky (WinStar) and the state of Arizona (Bob Baffert), but also Saudi Arabia, through co-owner Amr Zedan, plus drunk cocktails Anglo-Italian King Frankie Dettori.
If this is a trend and not simply a spike on the chart, then the World Cup bosses should be concerned. This year, the dying Santa Anita Handicap (G1), the victim of the near-World Cup, returned on March 4 with a strong revival for a meager $500,000 when quiet boy defeat Godolphin Authority and Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman’s out of money —all of which match the profiles of past World Cup contenders.
On Saturday at Fair Grounds Racecourse & Slotslong after the World Cup results were announced and dusted, the talents Art collector and emerge Western Willpower meet at the $500,000 New Orleans Classic Stakes (G2) in the highlight of the Louisiana Derby (G2). It wouldn’t be surprising to see one of those two older horses at the World Cup, but instead, they were part of an all-American race day.
With early retirement and childhood injuries rampant in the sordid world of America, the Art Collector is the kind of Thoroughbred the sport desperately needs. He’s a total horse, that’s the lithe of the attached testicles, and at the age of 6 he has the nostalgic look of an equestrian allowed to mature and develop.
Bill Mott, who has had Art Collector since day one, said: “Health has always been the key to a horse achieving its career. “He has some problems with his legs, cracks in the quarter and just needs time. But otherwise, he has always been an easy horse to train, a horse that loves to train.”
Bruce Lunsford (left) walks the Art Collector to the winners’ circle after his victory in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes
Bernardini’s son, bred and raced by Bruce Lunsford, went through 5 seasons with big scores each year. At the age of 2, he won his first turf race at Kentucky Downs worth 130,000 USD. At age 3, he won the Blue Grass Stakes (G2), with the eventual winner Preakness Stakes (G1) Swiss skydiver one game but beat the second. At the age of 4, the Art Collector won $800,000 in Charles Town Classic Stock (G2), then won it again at the age of 5 when the purse grew to $1 million, while in the middle of the period During that time, he won 2021 Woodward Shares (G1) in Belmont Park.
This reporter had to admit to Mott that Art Collector was never the subject of a BloodHorse column. Mott, who harbors a Don Rickles trait in his otherwise calm demeanor, reacted accordingly.
“Maybe you’re just like him,” Mott said. “Underdeveloped.”
Fair enough. Thank goodness the art collection group still has room, though. This year, he impressed with a four-and-a-half-long match against his opponent in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) Gulfstream Park. Such objections include Defunded, Stilleto Boy, Proxy and The ultimate samurai warrior who owned the older horse department at Oaklawn Park this winter. Just like that, the Art Collector jumped to third place on Mott’s list of the highest earners of all time, behind only Cigar and Royal Delta.
“You know, it might have been his best race ever,” Mott said. “That’s one of the reasons we didn’t go to the Middle East. Running as big as he did in Gulfstream, we thought perhaps putting him through a trip like that would have a chance to take a lot of time.
“We took him to Saudi Arabia last year and he didn’t like the track at all,” said the coach, alluding to Art Collector’s listless attempt at the 2022 Saudi Cup (G1). ). “So we decided to do a domestic campaign this year. I know there’s a big difference in budget between the races in Dubai and New Orleans this weekend. But Mr. Lunsford is concerned with the fact that there is a big difference in budgets between the races in Dubai and New Orleans this weekend. have more fun with your horse.”
At least they’re in the right town.
