Saudi Arabia

RIYADH, KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA -- For the second time in the last three runnings, America's reigning champion sprinter dominated in the desert, as MyRacehorse's Straight No Chaser (Speightster) asserted in the final furlong to prove a much-the-best winner of the Riyadh Dirt Sprint. The 1200-meter dash was upgraded to Group 2 status for the first time, had its purse hiked to $2 million and just this past Friday was named a 'Win and You're In' qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint. Champion Elite Power (Curlin) won the 2023...

RIYADH, KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA -- Making his first appearance in the International Jockeys' Challenge on the eve of the Saudi Cup meeting at King Abdulaziz Racecourse, journeyman jockey Muhammad Aldaham became the first homegrown rider to take out the competition, amassing a total of 30 points with victories in the first two legs of the series. Australia's Rachel King finished on 25 points to finish second ahead of James McDonald, whose 21 points was achieved in three races, owing to the scratching of his ride in race three of...

RIYADH, KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA -- Fourteen horses with Grade I or Group 1 form from America, Argentina, Dubai, Hong Kong, Japan and even Uruguay will take their chance at the winner's share of the $20-million gross purse for the world's richest horse race, Saturday's G1 Saudi Cup at King Abdulaziz Racecourse. And few of them are without some sort of chance. Susumu Fujita's Forever Young (Jpn) (Real Steel {Jpn}) returns to the Saudi capital 12 months on from a last-lunge success in the G3 Saudi Derby and looks to...

RIYADH, KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA -- There is almost no rainfall on an annual basis in the Saudi capital, but there was a flood of equine activity almost as soon as the clock struck seven on a cool Wednesday morning at King Abdulaziz. That is because a good many of the international raiders for Saturday's Saudi Cup meeting took to the main track almost as one, causing a real stir--in one case, a bit of a scare. The Noboru Takagi-trained Ushba Tesoro (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}) (inside) and Wilson Tesoro (Jpn)...

After fielding a team of four for last year's $20-million G1 Saudi Cup, a maximum of three horses and as few as just one horse already on the ground in Riyadh, could make up the American challenge for the 2025 renewal to be contested Saturday, Feb. 22 at King Abdulaziz Racetrack on the outskirts of the Saudi capital. Three of the four horses that took part in last year's running were each possible for a return trip, but none will ultimately travel. Last year's winner Senor Buscador (Mineshaft) was to...

The Ken McPeek-trained Rattle N Roll (Connect) had just one horse beaten for the opening six furlongs of Saturday's $400,000 Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup (King's Cup), a race carrying international Group 3 status for the first time and earning the winner a guaranteed spot in the field for the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup four weeks down the road. Quietly ridden by Joel Rosario, who had earlier won the Riyadh Dirt Sprint qualifier for Jimmy Jerkens aboard Ancestral Land (GB) (Sioux Nation), Rattle N Roll was felt for...

He is 22 months into a two-year contract to train privately in Saudi Arabia for Prince Faisal bin Khalid Al Saud, a move that rejuvenated his career, but Jimmy Jerkens said he is ready to come home. Jerkens told the TDN that when his contract expires in March he will return to U.S. and resume his career at the NYRA tracks. It's not that Jerkens hasn't done well in Saudi Arabia. He's had 21 winners during his time there. And it's not that he doesn't have any quality horses. "We've...

Classic winner Jan Brueghel (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) will not participate in the Longines Hong Kong International Races and will instead be prepared for a start in Saudi Arabia next year. Coolmore posted the news on X on Thursday. The Coolmore partners' 2024 G1 St Leger hero was forced to miss an intended start in the G1 Melbourne Cup due to a failed vet check. However, his preparation for Hong Kong was deemed insufficient by connections and he will likely resurface in the Middle East early in the new year. "He...

Fan favorite The Chosen Vron (Vronsky), scratched from the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint last weekend, will be turned out for several months after an issue was detected in his ankle. "We'll take it one step at a time," trainer J. Eric Kruljac said. "We'll give him four months off and then bring him back. I feel pretty good that he'll come back the same horse." California's reigning Horse of the Year, the 6-year-old has won 19 of his 25 career trips to the post to date and, after finishing fifth...

Outwork (Uncle Mo--Nonna Mia by Empire Maker), has been purchased to continue his stud career in Saudi Arabia through a deal brokered by Chad Schumer. The GI Wood Memorial winner won three of five career starts before retiring to WinStar Farm in 2017 with $701,800 in earnings. He's gone on to sire two Grade I winners, Leave No Trace and Brightwork. Another top performer includes millionaire Outadore, who won the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Turf Sprint in 2020 before running in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Keeneland, making a gallant...

The new digital ad platform BidXSell is scheduled to launch its initial sale August 28, when it will offer the winner of last year's Pegasus Stakes, Salute the Stars (Candy Ride {Arg}). We sat down with Saeed Almaddah, the President and CEO of Silk Road LLC, which operates the platform to discuss how it is different from other digital sales companies. TDN: The digital sales arena is becoming increasingly crowded, with bricks-and-mortar sales companies getting into the game and digital-only sales companies joining the fray as well. Why did you...

Racing in Saudi Arabia returned on Thursday with the start of the summer season from Taif. A total of 351 races will take place across 39 race meetings from King Khaled Racecourse, which has an altitude high enough to ensure cool temperatures suitable for racing during the summer months. September's King Faisal Cup, run over 1,600 metres for Purebred Arabians, has been upgraded to international Group 3 status ahead of the new season, meaning it will be the only Group 3 for Purebred Arabians run on dirt in the Gulf...