Horses You Should Know for the Dubai World Cup

California Chrome winning his Dubai World Cup prep in late February. (Photos by Dubai Racing Club/Andrew Watkins unless otherwise noted)
The richest night of racing on the global calendar, the Dubai World Cup card attracts some of the biggest names from all over the world.
The second year of the Dubai World Cup main track races returning to a conventional dirt surface from the synthetic Tapeta surface has attracted multiple U.S.-based horses with five U.S.-based horses shipping to Dubai for the Dubai World Cup.
Overall, American trainers have sent 11 horses to Dubai for the day’s eight Thoroughbred races, but none of the races will be a cake walk for any U.S. entry. Let’s take a look at three of the biggest races on the card and other horses with U.S. connections – both U.S.-based and international – that fans should know before tuning into the March 26th event. 
$10-million Dubai World Cup
Switching back to dirt last year has paid dividends for Meydan when it comes to attracting U.S. horses to the World Cup. Last year dual-classic winner California Chrome and Grade 1 winner Lea were sent over to the contest the race, finishing second and third respectively. But this year, many more American trainers are taking a shot at the $10-million purse with five of the 13 horses based in the U.S.
The always-popular California Chrome returns to try and better his second place in the race last year. The 5-year-old has taken a different route this time around, making his first start in early January when winning the Grade 2 San Pasqual Stakes at Santa Anita before jumping on the plane later that month to fly to Dubai. Spending two months there, California Chrome won his prep for the race in a handicap by an easy two lengths while carrying 132 pounds, at least 14 pounds more than any other horse in the field. 
One of the top 3-year-olds in the U.S. last year, Frosted started his season in Dubai in early February. Bouncing back from a seventh-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, Frosted broke the track record by more than a second when winning the Group 2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 by five lengths. Frosted seems to love the track and has been training up to Dubai World Cup since his victory, coming into the race with a nearly two month break.
FROSTED WINNING HIS MEYDAN PREP RACE

A regular presence in top races around the country, Hoppertunity has hit the board in each of his last five races including a win last out in the San Antonio Stakes. While the San Antonio is the first race he’s won since the 2015 San Pasqual Stakes, Hoppertunity is a horse you can always count on to be coming at the end. In Hoppertunity’s 18 career starts, he’s hit the board in 14 of them with five wins for over $1.8-million in earnings, so count him out at your own risk.
After successful campaigns on turf that saw him win multiple graded stakes, Mshawish has taken a switch to dirt like a duck to water. His first start on the surface came in last year’s Cigar Mile and he was a close fourth before winning two straight this year including the Grade 1 Donn Handicap. This isn’t Mshawish’s first trip to Dubai, he spent the early part of 2014 based at the track, even winning there, and finished third in the Dubai Turf last year while battling a foot bruise.
Keen Ice has also made the trip over to Dubai for the World Cup and ran up the track in his Meydan prep earlier this month. A few other horses who may look familiar are 2015 Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes runner Mubtaahij and former U.S.-based runner Candy Boy.
$2-million UAE Derby
The UAE Derby is the only Kentucky Derby prep race outside of North America and three of the past four winners have come over to run in the Derby with the fourth, Toast of New York, coming over later in the year to finish second in the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Classic. This year, the UAE Derby has attracted nine horses from five different countries with eight of those horses eligible for the Kentucky Derby (the ninth, Vale Dori, was born on Southern Hemisphere time and cannot run in the Derby).
Already the owner of 10 Kentucky Derby points, Frank Conversation is headed from California to Dubai to try and pick up the 100 points on offer to the winner of this race. The winner of the El Camino Real Derby in early February Frank Conversation has a familiar team behind him, sharing an owner, trainer and jockey with 2-year-old champion Nyquist. He is the only horse from the U.S. running in the UAE Derby and will be trying to become the first U.S.-based horse since Regal Ransom in 2009 to win the race.
FRANK CONVERSATION WINNING THE EL CAMINO REAL DERBY

Photo by Vassar Photography
Japanese owners are always willing to go after high profile races and the last few years, they’ve had their eyes set on the Kentucky Derby. Lani is the latest Japanese-trained horse to try and qualify with his connections already nominating him for the Triple Crown just in case he finishes first or second in this race, which should be enough to get him in. Lani is a U.S-bred son of Tapit out of a daughter of dual-U.S. classic winner Sunday Silence who has spent his whole career racing in Japan. Winning two of his races and finishing second in another last year, Lani finished off-the-board in his only 2016 start but it hasn’t deterred his connections from heading to Dubai.
Arguably the best 3-year-old to run at Meydan during the Winter Festival is the filly Polar River. The undefeated filly has won her four career starts by a combined 32 lengths but will be taking on males for the first time here. In her only start at the same distance of the UAE Derby (9 ½ furlongs), she had her smallest margin of victory at 3/4 of a length but that seemed to be more her easing down late in the race than the lack of ability to handle the distance. The filly won’t be headed to the Kentucky Oaks, according to Press Association Sport but trainer Doug Watson has said throughout the meet that a trip to the U.S. sometime this year is hopefully in her future.
POLAR RIVER WINNING THE UAE 1,000 GUINEAS

$6-million Dubai Sheema Classic
Possibly the biggest turf race on the card, the Dubai Sheema Classic has had some of the best horses in the business win the race, including 2011 Breeders’ Cup Turf victor St. Nicholas Abbey. There are no U.S.-based horses in this race but it did attract one who is familiar to the U.S. audience.
Highland Reel is working hard at becoming the next St. Nicholas Abbey for the team of Aidan O’Brien and Coolmore, who also campaigned that horse. A Group 2 winning 2-year-old, Highland Reel left the confines of Europe in the middle of last year to ship over for the Grade 1 Secretariat Stakes in Chicago, where he easily won the race by 5 ¼ lengths. Continuing his world traveler ways, Highland Reel shipped to Australia and was third in the Group 1 Cox Plate before ending his season in Hong Kong with a win in the Hong Kong Vase. The Dubai Sheema Classic will be his first start of 2016 and it won’t be a surprise to see him head over to the U.S. at least once this year after that run.
But before Highland Reel can plan the rest of his season, he has to get past Postponed. With a new trainer in charge of him, Postponed shipped to Dubai from England earlier this year and was very impressive when beating fellow Sheema Classic runner Dariyan in a March 5 prep race by an easy three lengths. A Group 1 winner last year, Postponed looks like he may be even stronger as a 5-year-old.
POSTPONED MADE EASY WORK OF HIS FIRST START OF THE YEAR

Another horse in the Japanese contingent running on Dubai World Cup night is dual classic winner Duramente. Duramente has won five of his seven starts and has never finished worse than second in his career. You can never count out a Japanese horse when he ships out of the country, especially one like Duramente who is coming off of a big win in a Group 2 in his first start back from an injury.
Other Horses With U.S. Connections
Confrontation is another horse trainer Kiaran McLaughin shipped to Dubai early to get in a prep race over the track before Dubai World Cup night. A bit surprisingly, Confrontation was entered in the Dubai Golden Shaheen, the dirt sprint race on the card instead of the mile race where many thought he would go especially after he won his prep race over the distance by two lengths.
CONFRONTATION

A Hong Kong-based horse, Rich Tapestry isn’t a stranger to U.S. fans. In 2014, the gelding shipped to California where he won a Grade 1 on his way to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint. That race didn’t go as planned with Rich Tapestry finishing in the back of the field. Last year, Rich Tapestry was third in the Golden Shaheen and this year won his 2016 debut ay Meydan by 1 ½ lengths before finishing third in his last start. Rich Tapestry hasn’t finished off the board in this race in two starts and can’t be counted out as a dangerous horse here. Hong Kong’s four horses in the race are probably the biggest threat to U.S. horses with last year’s second place finisher Super Jockey also running In here.
A majority interest in X Y Jet was sold last month to Rockingham Ranch with the Dubai Golden Shaheen in mind and all systems look like they are good to go a few days before the race. X Y Jet is a multiple graded stakes winner and comes into this race off a 1 ¼ length Grade 3 victory at Gulfstream Park last month. The only other time X Y Jet left Florida, he won a race at Monmouth Park and New Jersey but this is definitely his hardest test.
Marking is the only current U.S.-based horse running in the Godolphin Mile this year. The lightly raced 4-year-old won his first two starts in New York and finished second to champion Runhappy in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes at the end of last year. Marking had a rough start to his season in Meydan this year when he unseated his jockey right of out the gate in a Group 3 when stumbling. But he picked up his feet in late February and went on to win a handicap on the same day as California Chrome by two lengths. This is only his second start at a mile, but he easily won his other start at the distance with a 5 ½-length victory at Aqueduct in November.
MARKING IN HIS FINAL PREP

A former U.S. stakes winner, Cool Cowboy started his Meydan career in 2015 and didn’t have much success last year. But the 5-year-old gelding came out running in 2016. His first start was a second place finish to Reynaldothewizard (who is running in the Dubai Golden Shaheen) and has won two since, with a second-place finish sandwiched in between. In his last start, Cool Cowboy won a Group 3 prep race on Dubai’s Super Saturday at the same distance he’ll be running here.
An old familiar face to U.S. racing is Prayer for Relief, who is owned by Zayat Stables and was campaigned in the U.S. from 2010 until early 2015 before transferring to trainer Mike de Kock after finishing eighth in this race last year. Prayer for Relief has had an up-and-down season in Dubai this year, finishing third by less than a length twice at a mile but not having as much luck at farther distances. Since this race is at a mile, he’ll definitely be one to watch to hit the board here.
After her second place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint last year, Lady Shipman was transferred to Kiaran McLaughlin for this year’s campaign. Unlike McLaughlin’s other World Cup night entries, Lady Shipman didn’t run in Dubai before she lines up for the Al Quoz Sprint Instead, he sent her to the Ladies’ Turf Sprint Stakes at Gulfstream in early February where she won by an easy 2 ¾ lengths. This will be the first time she takes on an international field and travels internationally but the talent she’s shown in her races up to this point is promising.
In the $6-million Dubai Turf, 2014 Beverly D. winner Euro Charline looks to rebound from a bit of a tough year in 2015. The now-5-year-old filly, owned by U.S.-based Team Valor, had a year that included a second in a Group 1 race in England last year and fourth-place finish in the Beverly D. but never was able to get a win in the races. She was second in her 2016 prep at Meydan earlier this month and finished fourth in the Dubai Turf behind Solow in 2015. She’s taking on a tough field again this year, even with the defection from this race of Solow last week.