White Abarrio

Trainer Brad Cox confirmed that FMQ Stables' Saudi Crown (Always Dreaming), a brave third in the G1 Saudi Cup after setting bruising fractions up front, has shipped to Dubai and has settled in at Meydan Raceourse. The $45,000 Keeneland January short-yearling turned $240,000 OBS April breezer holds an entry for the G1 Dubai World Cup, where he would face a rematch with the two horses that finished ahead of him last weekend--Senor Buscador (Mineshaft) and Ushba Tesoro (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}). But Cox aid that the tentatively target is the Mar....

The team at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company does everything it can to run a clean sale. Under OBS's conditions of sale, no medication may be administered within 24 hours of a horse's under-tack performance, 10 to 15% of the horses who are going to sell are tested, and in 2019, OBS prohibited the use of bronchodilators like Clenbuterol at all of its sales. It may not be enough. The Jeffrey Englehart story has suggested that may be the case. Englehart bought a Classic Empire colt at the OBS auction...

After running home bravely to just miss reeling in National Treasure (Quality Road) in last month's $3-million GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S., it did not take long for the human braintrust around Senor Buscador (Mineshaft) to accept an invitation to the world's richest race, the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup half a world away. And why not? The 6-year-old admittedly had a bit to find on form with each of his four fellow American participants, but it wasn't as if he'd been dreadful in defeat in those efforts. Not when...

In the previous four runnings of the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup, American-based horses have--surprisingly--passed the post in first on a single occasion while finishing second on each occasion. That 'victory' came in the much-discussed inaugural running in 2020, a result that seems likely to soon be overturned, albeit to the benefit of another American horse. So, even though the U.S. is the epicenter of world dirt racing, its five representatives this year arguably still have something to prove when a field of 14 loads the gate around 12:40 p.m. ET...

Last year's GI Breeders' Cup Classic hero White Abarrio (Race Day), who leads Team USA in Saturday's 1800-meter $20-million G1 Saudi Cup, drew the rail in a field of 14 during the Saudi Cup draw ceremony in Saudi Arabia Wednesday. Trained by Richard Dutrow, Jr., the gray defeated Derma Sotogake (Jpn) (Mind Your Biscuits) (stall 13) in the Classic, and will face the starter for the first time since in Saturday's contest at King Abdulaziz Racecourse in Riyadh in just a handful of days. After the draw, Dutrow said, "He...

Japan's Crown Pride (Jpn) (Reach The Crown {Jpn}), a winner of the 2022 G2 UAE Derby and last year's G3 Korea Cup, galloped over the dirt track in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in advance of a start in the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup on Saturday. He is one of five Japanese horses in the world's richest race, which will go postward at 8:40 p.m. local time. "We did a 1200m gallop on the dirt track today. He moved and accelerated well. We are happy," Yohei Kotobuki, a stable representative, said of...

The plane carrying the Japanese contingent to Riyadh for next Saturday's Saudi Cup meeting touched down at King Khalid International Airport, and each of the nation's four entrants for the $20-million G1 Saudi Cup appear to have taken the flight in good order. Looking to make it back-to-back successes in the world's richest horse race following the stunning all-the-way victory by Panthalassa (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) last February are Japan's champion dirt horse Lemon Pop (Lemon Drop Kid); reigning G1 Dubai World Cup winner Ushba Tesoro (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}); Derma...

GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner White Abarrio (Race Day) and GI Pegasus World Cup victor National Treasure (Quality Road) are scheduled to leave Santa Anita for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Tuesday in advance of their expected next starts in the Saudi Cup Feb. 24. Per Santa Anita Stable Superintendent Jeff Metz, Richard Mandella will send Forbidden Kingdom (American Pharoah) and potentially Planetario (Brz) (Il Doge {Brz}) for starts on the Saudi Cup undercard. After spending nearly 12 hours in the holding barn at Santa Anita, the Saudi-bound contingent will leave for...

The Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia (JCSA) has published the likely fields for the Saudi Cup meeting to be held Saturday, Feb. 24, at King Abdulaziz Racecourse in the Saudi capital of Riyadh. The United States is set to be represented by a five-strong entry in the $20-million richest race in the world, a team headed by White Abarrio (Race Day), who will be making his first start since besting Derma Sotogake (Jpn) (Mind Your Biscuits) in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita Nov. 4. The 5-year-old, trained...

Saturday's GIII Robert B. Lewis S. winner Nysos (Nyquist) jumped to the top of the NTRA Top 3-year-old Poll Tuesday with a near-unanimous 30 votes while GIII Holy Bull S. upsetter Hades (Awesome Slew) made his first appearance on the list in fifth. Muth (Good Magic) picked up a single first-place vote as well to check in second on the list behind his Bob Baffert-trained stablemate. Champion 2-year-old Fierceness (City of Light) fell to third off his third-place performance in the Holy Bull. Track Phantom (Quality Road) filled out the...

The catalogue for the 2024 OBS March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training, which will feature 849 juveniles, has been released and is available online at obssales.com. Scheduled to be held Mar. 12-14 at the OBS grounds in Ocala, this year's sale will include 41 2-year-olds from the Lothenbach Stables dispersal. Sessions will begin daily at 11 a.m., with under-tack shows held the week prior from Mar. 6-9 at 8 a.m. daily. The iPad version of the catalogue can be accessed via the equineline app. Online bidding will again be available...

Defending G1 Dubai World Cup winner Ushba Tesoro (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}) features among 868 individual horses from 19 countries nominated to run at the $30.5-million Dubai World Cup meeting on Saturday, March 30. In total, more than 1,400 entries have been received across the nine races and Ushba Tesoro is one of 200 from Japan as he tries to become only the second dual winner of the $12-million Dubai World Cup (Sponsored by Emirates Airline) after Thunder Snow (Ire) (Helmet {Aus}) in 2018 and 2019. Incidentally, Thunder Snow also won...