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| Sumita Pawar |
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Ajuste Fiscal, a Group One winner, is set to compete alongside numerous other returning stars in the opening meeting of the new Dubai Racing Carnival on Friday.
Ajuste Fiscal, who won over 2000 meters at Meydan Racecourse back in December, will be resuming its racing campaign while carrying top weight. The horse finished fifth in the Gr.1 Maktoum Challenge Round 3 and will face a full field of 15 competitors, including Down On Da Bayou, the 2020 Gr.3 UAE Oaks champion, and Kafoo, a dual course winner who is also a stablemate of Ajuste Fiscal.
“Kafoo is a very interesting horse who arrived a few months ago to our stable,” said trainer Julio Olascoaga, who has taken over the handling of Kafoo from Bhupat Seemar. “He’s been working very well and even though we believe that his ideal might be further than a mile, it’s a good starting point.”
Kafoo will be partnered with stable jockey Jose Da Silva, while Oscar Chavez, the winning rider of the Dubai Kahayla Classic, will be on Ajuste Fiscal.
“Ajuste Fiscal goes for his fourth UAE season,” said Olascoaga. “He might need further to see him at his best, but it is not a concern as he’s well prepared. He can do some damage if things go his way.”
Touch Gold Racing now owns two of the three horses previously owned by Al Rashid Stables, Western Symphony and Imperial Empire, both of which are now under the care of Seemar.
“We considered splitting them up, but we think this is the right starting point for each of them,” said Mike Kaye, Touch Gold Racing Founder. “Tadhg [O’Shea, Stable Jockey] prefers Western Symphony, who had a good year last year, progressing through the ratings, and we’re hopeful he’ll have a good year for us.
“Imperial Empire has also been working well but is drawn 15 of 16. We’re not entirely sure where we are with him, having had quite a disappointing season last year. Hopefully we can drop him in here and he can run on and show us something, with a view to trying him over further in the future.”
In race seven, the Emirates Airline Handicap over a distance of 1200 metres, the Olascoaga stable welcomes a notable addition in Gladiator King, a dual course Group Three winner. The 7YO, now representing Sheikh Humaid Bin Rashid Al Nuaimi's colours, is eager to redeem himself after only participating in three races since 2021.
“There’s not much to say about his quality, he’s spoken for himself at Meydan before,” said the trainer. “He’s been training well and by now we have no excuses but to see him perform. Stable jockey Jose da Silva was happy with his final work and picked him over stablemate Fast-Uno.
“Fast-Uno didn’t show his full potential last season. He’s now gelded and has improved.”
One of the contenders against the Olascoaga pair is Kaye's Leading Spirit. This horse has a victory on turf at Meydan, though it has yet to win a race on dirt.
“Leading Spirit comes into it off a 3lb rise for coming fourth in the Jebel Ali Sprint,” he says. “It’s a course and distance that we’re hoping this season he can show us something over, but this is very much a starting point as it’s a while since he ran here and his rating could be a bit high.”
On Friday, Meydan is hosting its first 2YO race of the season, the Emirates Holidays Maiden, race two, which covers a distance of 1200 metres and features eight contenders. Among them is Gaassid, a US$160,000 son of UAE Derby champion Mendelssohn, trained by Michael Costa from Jebel Ali Stable. Costa has two horses in the race, with Ben Coen on Gaassid and James Orman riding the Union Rags colt, Alsayef. The duo will compete against six other horses, including graduates of the Goffs Dubai Sale, namely Killer Collect, El Nasseeb, and Tactical Bound.
Also competing in the early season is nine-time Dubai World Cup-winning trainer Saeed Bin Suroor, who has two horses in the Emirates SkyCargo Handicap, race three. His first entry is Wild Hurricane, who will be ridden by Adrie de Vries. Although he's a seven-race maiden, Wild Hurricane will make his dirt debut in this race. His competitors include Perfect Balance, who has already won this season at Sharjah.
The Emirates.com Handicap, which is the evening's final race and covers a distance of 1400 metres, is expected to be highly competitive. One of the contenders is Fight Zone, a dual Irish winner who will make his local debut under the guidance of Olascoaga. The trainer is optimistic about his horse's chances of winning.
“Fight Zone reappears after a three-year absence, and it’s his first time over Meydan’s dirt surface,” said the trainer. “He has worked very well towards this race, but race day is a different thing. Connections have waited a long time to see him running here, and we are as keen as they are to get him started.”
Keep an eye on Mayaadeen, a 1400metre specialist and one of six course winners who are among Fight Zone's rivals. Another contender to watch out for is Shake Hand, who has a course and distance success on his CV. Racing starts at 5:30pm with a Purebred Arabian 1400metre handicap and there are eight races on the card.