Buraak Defends UAE President Cup Title In Morocco
Buraak retained the UAE President Cup for Purebred Arabian Horses title in Morocco for a second consecutive year, winning the 14th leg of the 33rd edition of the Prestigious Cup at the Casablanca-Anfa sand racecourse on 19 September 2026, as part of the second UAE-Moroccan Festival.
The Gr.3 UAE President Cup for Purebred Arabian Horses was run over 1,900 metres on sand for horses aged four years and over, and Buraak, racing for Al Leith Racing under trainer Ali Mohamed and jockey Mohcine Lafram, crossed the line in 2:12.63, one and three-quarter lengths ahead of Moshrif, owned by Khalifa Bin Sheail Al Kuwari and handled by trainer Xavier Thomas-Demeaulte and jockey Guillaume Guedj-Gay, with Mugheer third for Atlas Stud under trainer Rachid Fennane and jockey Omar Lakjal.
Seventeen-Runner Field Tests Purebred Arabians
Buraak, sired by Mehab out of Shamous Bint Djouras Two, sat off the pace before making his move on the final turn, taking the lead and holding it through the home straight. Nahim finished fourth and Ya Aini Fal fifth, completing a field of 17 that organisers had billed beforehand as drawn from elite stables across Morocco, North Africa and Europe. Among the beaten runners, Yas Horse Racing Management fielded two of the field's most fancied types in So'ud, trained by Thomas Fourcy and ridden by Alexandre Gavilan, and Tariq, trained by Damien de Watrigant, while Moshrif carried topweight into the race at 62kg. Buraak's win at Casablanca-Anfa follows his victory at the same venue in 2025, giving him back-to-back titles at the Morocco leg of the Prestigious Cup.
Festival Builds On UAE-Morocco Ties
The race formed part of a wider programme jointly staged by Morocco's Royal Society for the Encouragement of the Horse (SOREC) and the Higher Organizing Committee of the UAE President Cup for Purebred Arabian Horses, with eight races for Purebred Arabian and purebred-crossbred horses run across the day. Organisers framed the festival as a reflection of the ties between the United Arab Emirates and Morocco, tied to cooperation between the two countries on equestrian sport. The event marked only the second running of the UAE-Moroccan Festival since its inaugural staging, part of a broader Prestigious Cup calendar that now runs to 33 editions and takes in racecourses across the Arab world, Europe and beyond.
The trophy presentation was attended by HE Al Asri Saeed Ahmed Al Dhaheri, the UAE's Ambassador to Morocco; HE Faisal Al Rahmani, Secretary-General of the Higher Organizing Committee of the UAE President Cup for Purebred Arabian Horses; and Omar Skalli, Director General of SOREC. The Prestigious Cup series runs with the support of HH Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court, whose backing is aimed at growing the Arabian horse racing industry and raising the breed's profile at leading racecourses.
"The continued success of the Prestigious Cup series is the result of the generous support and wise vision of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and his ongoing commitment to developing the Arabian horse racing industry," Al Rahmani said.
Series Extends Its Reach Across Continents
Al Rahmani credited the turnout and technical standard at Casablanca-Anfa with reflecting the series' standing among owners and breeders across Morocco, the Arab world and Europe, and thanked SOREC for its role in organising the event. He also noted Buraak's second consecutive win at the Morocco leg specifically, describing it as confirmation of the horse's place among the Prestigious Cup's champions. The Casablanca-Anfa fixture has become one of the series' more closely watched North African legs since the UAE-Moroccan Festival was first staged, drawing entries from Moroccan-based yards alongside visiting Gulf stables such as Al Leith Racing and Atlas Stud.
With the 33rd edition of the Prestigious Cup continuing across its remaining legs, Buraak's win in Casablanca adds to a season in which the series has again brought Purebred Arabian racing to venues spanning the Gulf, North Africa and Europe under the same banner, reinforcing the event's stated aim of building the breed's international racing profile leg by leg.