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| Staff Writer |
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Dubai Racing Carnival is set to showcase bumper fields to racegoers. Out of the nine races scheduled, five of them have already reached their capacity. The highlight of the event is the Lord Glitters Handicap, specifically race five, where Ouzo will be aiming for two consecutive wins. In the past month, Ouzo triumphed in the Lord North Handicap over the same 1800 meters of turf.
However, his recent victory resulted in a 4lbs raise by the handicapper, which caused his trainer Jamie Osborne to feel somewhat anxious.
“It was a nice, happy surprise,” said the British trainer of the win. “He came here last year and he kept hitting the crossbar off 93 and 94 so I was worried about him coming here and doing it off 98. I thought it was a longshot that he would win here and he certainly put up a lifetime best.
“He now has to try and do it off 102, which I’m not sure is possible, but he does seem to be in form of his life.”
Saffie Osborne, who has recently recovered from an injury, will be riding Ouzo in the upcoming Lord Glitters Handicap race, starting from post three out of 16.
Silent Film, who came in second in the Lord North Handicap, along with Highbank, Track Of Time, Good Fortune, and Ursa Minor, who finished fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh, respectively, are all set to renew their rivalry in the same race.
Charlie Appleby, who has won all five 3YO turf races held so far, trains Highbank. He is confident of keeping his track record going with Beautiful Love in the Defender 130 3YO contest, which is the second race of the day. The Siyouni filly had an impressive performance in her last race, finishing second to Cinderella's Dream in the Jumeirah Fillies' Classic.
“We were pleased with Beautiful Love in the Jumeirah Fillies’ Classic and stepping back up to a mile is going to suit,” said Appleby. “She heads into this in good shape and we are confident that she will be there or thereabouts.”
Ten contenders, including Athan, who has secured a place in his last two races, will be competing against Beautiful Love.
“He’s an improving horse and I think he should have a really good chance,” said jockey Adrie De Vries of the Fawzi Nass-trained colt, who carries 62kg due to his Southern Hemisphere breeding. “He has to give away a lot of weight, but the competition is not that strong and he’s capable of winning.”
In the previous month, Changing Colours won a 1400-meter turf handicap convincingly and will be competing in the same conditions again in race four, the Defender 110X Handicap. The Musabbeh Al Mheiri-trained horse will once again face off against Molaqab, who came in second with Ben Coen as the jockey.
Sandro Paiva, who rode Changing Colours to victory in Meydan, will keep the ride and is eagerly anticipating the race. "Although I haven't ridden him since our last win, I am thrilled to be back on board," he said.
“I spoke with Maria [Ritchie, assistant to Al Mheiri] and she said he’s in top form. I hope the rain doesn’t continue, because it’s been raining a lot here the last two days.”
Olympic Candle, who has won two out of three starts under Saeed Bin Suroor, will carry the lowest weight of 55kg.
He will be ridden by Richie Mullen, who said, “he’s two from three in the UK and an exciting spare ride to pick up. It’s always nice to ride for Saeed. We go back a long way as I had my first ever winner in Dubai for Saeed in 2000, on Grazalema in the Al Fahidi Fort.”
The Land Rover Handicap, which is an 8-horse race over 1400 meters on dirt, features My Dubawi, who clinched a stunning victory in the previous race under the guidance of Bhupat Seemar and Tadhg O'Shea. Among his competitors is a new entrant, Irregular Warfare, who won two out of three races in the UK for Roger Varian and has now joined Fawzi Nass's team.
“He’s definitely an interesting horse but he’s had a few setbacks so he could need the run,” said jockey De Vries. “He’s talented though and I’m pretty sure he’ll go on dirt.”
In the upcoming race, Defender 90 Handicap, 16 horses are set to compete over 2000 meters on turf. One of the favorites to win is Arabian Tale, who will be ridden by O'Shea for Seemar.
"I am excited to ride him, he is a beautiful horse," stated the 11-time UAE Champion Jockey. "In his previous race at Abu Dhabi, he won convincingly in only his second local start, and I believe this increase in distance will work in his favor."
The racing commences at 5:30 pm with the Defender X-Dynamic Defender Maiden for Purebred Arabians, which also has a full capacity field of 14 horses.