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| Staff Writer |
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The Racing In Dubai Sale at Meydan on 26th March saw renowned UAE trainer Bhupat Seemar emerge as the most active participant, returning to a trusted source of talent.
He made several acquisitions on behalf of various owners, including the top-priced lot, a three-time winner named First Sight (Lot 45) that was purchased for AED1,000,000 (equivalent to US$272,105 with an exchange rate of AED1=US$0.27). Additionally, Seemar secured Al Nafir, a sibling of Godolphin's esteemed world champion Ghaiyyath.
Mohammed Khaleel Ahmed was the successful bidder for First Sight, while Al Nafir will be co-owned by Vibhav Shah and other new owners. "He's wanted to have a horse with me for a while and I said I'd find him the right one," Seemar joked about Shah.
Seemar had a successful purchase earlier at the sale for the Zabeel Stables family. He acquired an unraced 3YO gelding named Secret Manner (lot 39) for AED425,000. The horse is sired by Dubawi and his dam, Show Day, is a listed winner and a sister to the talented Usherette, who has already produced a few winners.
"He's unexposed and he's a Dubawi, so he had a lot of appeal," the trainer said of Secret Manner. "He's for an existing client. We've had a lot of success buying horses like this, including those who have gone all the way to the Dubai World Cup meeting itself. Hopefully, he can be one of those!"
In 2016, North America was acquired by Satish Seemar, who is Bhupat's uncle, for AED140,000 after a few races for Charlie Appleby. He was a profitable acquisition, earning many times that amount on the track, winning at group 1 level on dirt and featuring behind two-time winner Thunder Snow in a couple of editions of the Gr.1 Dubai World Cup.
Another horse acquired by the Seemars at a sale in September 2018 was Touch Gold Racing's Leading Spirit for AED400,000. The horse recently won the Gr.3 Mahab Al Shimaal and has a chance at Saturday's Gr.1 Dubai Golden Shaheen, among other runners for the top local stable.
The sale held by the Emirates Racing Authority involved 49 lots, the majority of which were consigned by Godolphin. A few lightly raced 3-YOs that had started their training in Europe and frequent faces from the Dubai Carnival were also included.
The sale was held by Tattersalls and auctioneers John O'Kelly and Harvey Bell in the center of Meydan's vast saddling enclosure behind the grandstand. It has been organized for a few years to offer horses to be raced in the United Arab Emirates for various owners.
The sale has been given more prominence in the springtime as there is no breeze-up sale this year, and trainers require time to prepare newly purchased horses for autumn racing, when the season resumes.
The horses sold at the sale were suitable for future Carnival campaigns, as well as some that were more suited to lesser tracks. However, it was stipulated that the horses could not be exported for a year, until the end of the next season.