Dubai International race day thrusts Purebred Arabian Racing into the spotlight

Sheikh Hamdan has also outlined an idea to create three top-class Purebred Arabian races to be held in Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Dubai within the next two years.

The Sheikh Mansour Festival has become a banner under which Purebred Arabian horses have started to flourish in Europe and North America. Ravindranath K / The National

The Purebred Arabian landscape has changed dramatically in the past 12 months, and the fact trainer Beverley Deutrom plans to run Lahoob in two races inside the next seven days for the lion’s share of £450,000 (Dh2.6 million) says it all.

For a sport so often in the shadow of thoroughbred racing, a huge injection of money has hit Purebred Arabian racing in the last year, changing it mostly for the better.

Lahoob lines up in the £50,000 Dubai International Stakes over 2,000 metres at Newbury on Sunday and faces last year’s one-two finishers Al Hibaab and Djet Taouy.

In addition to Lahoob, Deutrom runs the unraced Furry, while Julian Smart will saddle Gazwan. Francois Rohaut has travelled from France with Handassa.

If Lahoob runs with credit in the showpiece event to Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid’s Dubai International Arabian day, Deutrom will take her charge to Goodwood, where Lahoob will run over a distance 400 metres shorter in the Harwood International Stakes on Saturday.

Last year, the Goodwood race was staged at Doncaster in September and was worth £150,000.

The prize money was increased and the race moved amid the sponsorship by Qatar of next week’s meeting that was formerly known as Glorious Goodwood but is now called the Qatar Goodward Festival.

The Qatar Harwood International Stakes does not directly clash with the Dubai International Stakes as it is over a different distance, but the best runners from France have not crossed the Channel, which is surely down to the proximity of Saturday’s contest.

Its positioning in the calendar is a thorny issue.

“The Goodwood race is amazing for the sport, but it is held at completely the wrong time,” Deutrom said.

“Dubai Day is the best day’s Purebred Arabian racing of the year, anywhere, and the best of the French would have come to Dubai day if the Goodwood race was not a few days afterwards.

“The Dubai International Stakes has cut up from the entries, which shows there is a lack of top horses in the sport. It makes it a little bit tricky.”

Next week’s race is the first leg of a new Triple Crown that also includes the Arabian World Cup at Longchamp, the second-most valuable race on the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe card, and the HH Emir’s Sword, which is staged in Doha in February.

Should any horse win all three legs, there will be a US$1 million (Dh3.67m) bonus.

It is clear life has rarely been as good for owners of top Purebred Arabian horses.

Overall, there are 19 Purebred Arabian races in Europe in 2015 that offer purses of €50,000 (Dh201,000) or more.

Qatar’s injection of money mirrors that of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The Sheikh Mansour Festival has set up a Triple Crown series both in Europe and North America.

The Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup European Triple Crown offers a bonus of £50,000 if all three races are won by the same horse. Its American counterpart, the Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup Triple Jewel, has a bonus of $150,000.

Taking into account that the National Day Cup in Abu Dhabi in November is now worth €1.2m and has been rebranded the Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown, Abu Dhabi has played a significant role.

There could be more to come. Sheikh Hamdan has supported Dubai International Arabian day for more than 25 years, and he stepped in this season to create a series of races in Britain that act as a nursery for today’s event, one of which Al Hibaab won at Newbury last month.

Speaking at a private gathering on Friday, Sheikh Hamdan outlined an idea to create three top-class Purebred Arabian races to be held in Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Dubai within the next two years.

He intends to speak to Sheikh Mansour and the Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club to try to create an international three-race Purebred Arabian series ahead of the World Cup and the Dubai Kahayla Classic.

It would take Purebred Arabian racing to an unprecedented level.

“There are now so many races for horses that race over a mile to ten furlongs if they can travel internationally,” Deutrom said. “Basically, the world is your oyster.”

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