It is one of those rare occasions that a Godolphin horse isn’t featuring in the $12 million Dubai World Cup but they more than make up for that with a strong presence on the four turf races on the card at Meydan Racecourse on Saturday.
Rebel's Romance carries the royal blues’ hopes in the penultimate race and turf feature, the $6 million Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic.
The 2021 Group 2 UAE Derby winner has three Group/Grade 1 wins in Germany and the US and arrives on the back of his Group 3 success in The Amir Trophy in Doha last month.
“It was great to see Rebel’s Romance win in Qatar. He had a great spell two years ago, culminating with victory in the Breeders’ Cup Turf, and last year was a little stop-start,” Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby said of the six year old Dubawi gelding.
“He lost his confidence after clipping heels at Saratoga [unseating his rider in June last year], so we came back to the UK and went to Kempton [December] for an easier assignment.
“You could see afterwards that his confidence was back and we headed to Qatar with a horse who we felt was back on his A game.
“He has come here in great nick. It looks the strongest race of the evening, but the 12-furlong turf division is always strong internationally.
“We respect the opposition and I guess we can take positives from his wide draw (11) as the first turn comes up quickly at Meydan. Hopefully, William [Buick] can get him into a good position by the back stretch.”
Aidan O’Brien’s dual Derby winner Auguste Rodin and Japanese raider Liberty Island along with the Coronation Cup winner Emily Upjohn and French entry Junko are the horses to watch in the race.
Measured Time, a full brother to Rebel’s Romance and also trained by Appleby, has won five of his six career starts and runner up in the other.
He’s on the back of a first Group 1 success in the Jebel Hatta and two over the track and trip to afford the royal blues a big chance in the preceding $5 million Group 1 Dubai Turf.
“Measured Time has won both his starts at Meydan this season,” the trainer said of the four year.
“With the restructuring of the programme, the Jebel Hatta moved to January from Super Saturday, so we brought him here for a racecourse gallop earlier this month. His work there pleased us and he has done everything right since.
“He has his Group 1 win but this is another step up. We have had a lot of confidence in the horse. I feel that he is a sharper horse compared to Rebel Romance and we were probably stretching his stamina too much when he got beat over a mile and a half at Kempton.”
The Saeed bin Suroor-trained Real World is Godolphin’s second runner in the race.
Lord North, attempting to win the prize for a record extending fourth time, and Japan’s Do Duece and O’Brien’s Luxembourg are set to challenge the Godolphin runner.
Godolphin is triple handed in the Dubai Gold Cup. They are under three different trainers with Appleby running Siskany, John and Thady Gosden sending out Trawlerman, and Bin Suroor’s Passion And Glory completing the trio.
O’Brien’s Tower Of Strength and Roger Varian’s Eldar Eldarov are the two to watch in the race.
Godolphin’s Star Of Mystery has proven a revelation over Meydan’s turf sprint course this season and bids to become the first three-year-old to win the Group 1 Al Quoz Sprint.
“Star Of Mystery has thrived out here over the winter,” Appleby said of the Kodiac filly.
“She was receiving weight in the Blue Point Sprint, when we were hoping to get some Group Black Type, but she was very impressive that day.
“She ran another strong race in the Nad Al Sheba Turf Sprint, when you could potentially argue that she might have won with a better track position.
“Take nothing away from the winner Frost At Dawn, who has also been very consistent and sprinting looks to be her forte. I think both her and Star Of Mystery will be very competitive again with the weight allowance for three-year-old fillies.”
The nine-race card gets under way with the first of the five races on the dirt, the Group 1 Dubai Kahayla Classic for the Purebred Arabians in which Saudi Arabia’s Nasser Mutlaq Alkahtani-trained pair Asfan Al Khalediah and Tilal Al Khalediah appear to be the horses to beat.
Afan Al Khalediah is undefeated in 14 starts and his stable companion is nine from 10, beaten into second in a photo.
Saudi Crown, third in the Saudi Cup last month, looks the pick of the lot in the Group 2 Godolphin Mile.
The Saudi Derby winner Forever Young can replicate that performance in the UAE Derby while Nakatomi can get one across the board for the Americans in a tricky Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen.
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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Nick Coleman
Jonathan Cape
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
