Highly rated Slade Power to come to Meydan Racecourse for World Cup Carnival

Edward Lynam has confirmed that the tenacious winner of the British Champions Sprint will be in Dubai on January 9.

Slade Power, left, won the British Champions Sprint Stakes on Saturday. Charlie Crowhurst / Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse

Edward Lynam has confirmed that Slade Power will join stablemate Sole Power for a winter campaign at Meydan Racecourse for the upcoming Dubai World Cup Carnival, which starts on January 9.

Slade Power was a tenacious winner of the British Champions Sprint at Ascot Racecourse on Saturday, when he denied Jack Dexter by a neck over 1,200m on soft ground.

It was a remarkable victory because 12 months ago in the same race the son of Dutch Art cracked his pelvis but still finished under five lengths adrift of fellow Irish raider Maarek.

“We were seriously worried that his career might be over,” Lynam said. “He’s a proper high-class racehorse.

“He’s a bit of a poser and when he hit the front he just pulled up a bit. He wants quicker ground ideally but does go on anything.”

Sole Power, this summer’s King’s Stand Stakes winner at Royal Ascot, has been a standing dish in Dubai since first running at the region’s flagship racecourse in March 2011.

The six-year-old gelding did not take part on Champions Day due to unsuitably soft going and the stable companions could head to Hong Kong for the lucrative December meeting before coming out to the UAE.

Slade Power has form over 1,400m, having finished second over the distance on an all-weather surface at Dundalk last year, and could be a contender for the revamped Al Fahidi Fort.

The Group 2 contest has been reduced in distance from 1,600m to 1,400m, among a raft of changes to the Dubai World Cup Carnival programme that were announced by the Dubai Racing Club yesterday.

The Al Fahidi Fort, to be staged on January 23, has been reduced in distance to give options to such horses as Slade Power.

“We wanted to develop our 1,400m programme and noted that there were not many races of the status of the Al Fahidi Fort over that distance around the world,” Martin Talty, International Manager at Dubai Racing Club said.

“We wanted to open the race up so that it ties in with the Zabeel Mile held five weeks later, which can be used to prep for Dubai World Cup day races.”

Other changes include the upgrading of the $US150,000 (Dh550,000) Singspiel Stakes over 1,800m on turf, which will be staged on January 9, the $150,000 Dubawi Stakes over 1,200m on Tapeta a week later and the $200,000 Dubai Millennium, run over 2,000m on turf on February 20.

All three have been upgraded to Listed class, and with the Meydan Sprint being upgraded to a Group 3, and the Dubai Gold Cup to a Group 2, there is now a more coherent structure to the programme aimed at attracting international runners throughout the Carnival.

“The Dubai Gold Cup became a Group 3 in 2010 and moved to the Dubai World Cup programme in 2012,” Talty added. “It is a race that has become attractive to trainers with stayers from around the world and hopefully it will take a step up to a Group 1, adding further value to the Dubai World Cup card.”

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