Victoire Pisa, the Dubai World Cup winner, is set to clash with Presvis, the Dubai Duty Free victor, in the Queen Elizabeth II Hong Kong Cup in May.
The 2,000-metre race could also feature River Jetez and Wigmore Hall, who finished second and third behind Presvis on Saturday.
Victoire Pisa became the first Japanese horse to triumph in the Dubai World Cup in 16 runnings of the race when leading home compatriot Transcend at Meydan Racecourse on Saturday.
Katsuhiko Sumii intimated that a trip to Hong Kong could be a possibility in his post-race press conference, and it now has been confirmed that the trainer has applied to run in the prestigious Asian Group 1.
The Queen Elizabeth II Cup is held three weeks before the Singapore Cup at Kranji, a race run over the same distance. It gives connections the option of running Victoire Pisa in that US$2.25 million (Dh8.28m) contest, also.
The race features on the same card as the KrisFlyer International Sprint, which is set to feature Rocket Man, the Dubai Golden Shaheen winner, and possibly Kinsale King, who was scratched on the morning of the Dubai World Cup card.
"It might have helped us that the QE II Cup is a week later this year due to how Easter falls in the calendar, and the Singapore Turf Club moved its big meeting accordingly," Bill Nader, the executive director of racing at the Hong Kong Jockey Club, said of Sumii's request.
"That meant horses had an extra recovery week after Dubai but also that they could still run at Kranji as well and didn't have to choose between us and Singapore."
It will be the first time a Dubai World Cup winner has contested the race although Lizard's Desire, who finished second to Gloria de Campeao at Meydan last year, ran into second spot behind Viva Pataca at Sha Tin 12 months ago.
Sumii has previous form in Hong Kong, having saddled Hat Trick to victory in the 2005 Hong Kong Mile.
Presvis also has good form there, having raced three times at Sha Tin where he won the Queen Elizabeth Cup in 2009.
Ryan Moore, the jockey, was on board when Presvis won in Hong Kong, although the three-time English champion may not be available this time around.
"The only issue that might cost us Presvis is that his trainer, Luca Cumani, was a bit concerned he wouldn't have Ryan Moore for the race as it is the 2,000 Guineas weekend in England and he'll have commitments there," Nader said. "But if he can find a suitable jockey then he seemed keen to come."
[ sports@thenational.ae ]
Confirmed bouts (more to be added)
Cory Sandhagen v Umar Nurmagomedov
Nick Diaz v Vicente Luque
Michael Chiesa v Tony Ferguson
Deiveson Figueiredo v Marlon Vera
Mackenzie Dern v Loopy Godinez
Tickets for the August 3 Fight Night, held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, went on sale earlier this month, through www.etihadarena.ae and www.ticketmaster.ae.
SNAPSHOT
While Huawei did launch the first smartphone with a 50MP image sensor in its P40 series in 2020, Oppo in 2014 introduced the Find 7, which was capable of taking 50MP images: this was done using a combination of a 13MP sensor and software that resulted in shots seemingly taken from a 50MP camera.
SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 2,200m; Winner: Gurm, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Al Nafece, Al Muatasm Al Balushi, Mohammed Ramadan
6pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Adrie de Vries, Ibrahim Aseel
6.30pm: Arabian Triple Crown – Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Ottoman, Adrie de Vries, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7pm: Liwa Oasis – Group 2 (PA) 300,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Hakeemat Muscat, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Ganbaru, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
The specs: 2018 Range Rover Velar R-Dynamic HSE
Price, base / as tested: Dh263,235 / Dh420,000
Engine: 3.0-litre supercharged V6
Power 375hp @ 6,500rpm
Torque: 450Nm @ 3,500rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 9.4L / 100kms
TERMINAL HIGH ALTITUDE AREA DEFENCE (THAAD)
What is THAAD?
It is considered to be the US's most superior missile defence system.
Production:
It was created in 2008.
Speed:
THAAD missiles can travel at over Mach 8, so fast that it is hypersonic.
Abilities:
THAAD is designed to take out ballistic missiles as they are on their downward trajectory towards their target, otherwise known as the "terminal phase".
Purpose:
To protect high-value strategic sites, such as airfields or population centres.
Range:
THAAD can target projectiles inside and outside the Earth's atmosphere, at an altitude of 150 kilometres above the Earth's surface.
Creators:
Lockheed Martin was originally granted the contract to develop the system in 1992. Defence company Raytheon sub-contracts to develop other major parts of the system, such as ground-based radar.
UAE and THAAD:
In 2011, the UAE became the first country outside of the US to buy two THAAD missile defence systems. It then stationed them in 2016, becoming the first Gulf country to do so.
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
TWISTERS
Director:+Lee+Isaac+Chung
Starring:+Glen+Powell,+Daisy+Edgar-Jones,+Anthony+Ramos
Rating:+2.5/5
RACE SCHEDULE
All times UAE (+4 GMT)
Friday, September 29
First practice: 7am - 8.30am
Second practice: 11am - 12.30pm
Saturday, September 30
Qualifying: 1pm - 2pm
Sunday, October 1
Race: 11am - 1pm
World Cup warm-up fixtures
Friday, May 24:
- Pakistan v Afghanistan (Bristol)
- Sri Lanka v South Africa (Cardiff)
Saturday, May 25
- England v Australia (Southampton)
- India v New Zealand (The Oval, London)
Sunday, May 26
- South Africa v West Indies (Bristol)
- Pakistan v Bangladesh (Cardiff)
Monday, May 27
- Australia v Sri Lanka (Southampton)
- England v Afghanistan (The Oval, London)
Tuesday, May 28
- West Indies v New Zealand (Bristol)
- Bangladesh v India (Cardiff)
