Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Saudi Cup hero Mishriff goes to turf for Sheema Classic
Prior to his one-length win in the $20 million Saudi Cup on Feb. 20, Mishriff had a fine record in world-class turf races.
Last July, Mishriff won his Group 1 debut in the $1 million French Derby at 1 5/16 miles at Chantilly Racecourse, the first of two consecutive group stakes wins.
The versatile 4-year-old races on turf for the first time this year in the Group 1, $5 million Sheema Classic at about 1 1/2 miles on turf at Meydan Racecourse in the United Arab Emirates on Saturday, the leading grass race on the Dubai World Cup program.
Trained by John Gosden, Mishriff will start from the outside post in a field of 10 that includes Channel Maker, winner of the 2020 Eclipse Award as the outstanding turf male in North America; Chrono Genesis, a three-time Grade 1 winner from Japan; and Mogul, a two-time Group 1 winner trained by Aidan O’Brien’s high-profile Irish stable.
Mishriff will be ridden by David Egan, who was aboard in the Saudi Cup for his biggest career win. Mishriff has a tendency to race from a stalking position, which will put pressure on Egan to gain a comfortable spot on the first turn of the $5 million Sheema Classic.
As of Thursday, Mishriff and Chrono Genesis were 5-2 joint favorites with British bookmakers, with Mogul also well respected at 7-2.
Chrono Genesis and the outsider Loves Only You, also from Japan, are the only mares in a field of 10. Chrono Genesis, 5, had an outstanding 2020 campaign, winning the Grade 1 Takarazuka Kinen at 1 3/8 miles on turf at Hanshin Racecourse in June and finishing the year with a neck win in the Grade 1 Arima Kinen, a $5.5 million race at 1 9/16 miles that annually brings together one of the toughest fields of the year in Japan.
Chrono Genesis will be ridden by Yuichi Kitamura, her regular rider, and breaks from post 8, which should suit her closing style.
Mogul, who tends to run from off the pace, is typical of a top-class O’Brientrained runner in that the 4-year-old colt is well traveled. The Sheema Classic will be his fifth start in as many different countries. Last August, Mogul was third in the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes at York Racecourse in England, but rebounded to win the Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris at 1 1/2 miles at Longchamp Racecourse in France the following month.
Mogul was fifth, beaten three lengths by Tarnawa, in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Keeneland in November and ended 2020 with an impressive three-length win the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong.
Channel Maker was third in the BC Turf and second in his only subsequent start in the $1 million Neom Turf Cup at 1 5/16 miles on the Saudi Cup program, his first start outside of North America. Trained by Bill Mott, Channel Maker thrives at 1 1/2 miles, having won the Grade 1 Sword Dancer Stakes at Saratoga last August and the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont Park last October at that distance.
Joel Rosario, who rode Channel Maker in Saudi Arabia, has the mount on the 7-yearold.
The local contingent is led by another 7-year-old in Walton Street, winner of two stakes at 1 1/2 miles at Meydan earlier this year.
Dubai Turf
Lord North, fourth in the BC Turf in November, will have his 2021 debut in Saturday’s Group 1 Dubai Turf at about 1 1/8 miles for Gosden.
Lord North closed from seventh of 10 to finish 2 3/4 lengths behind Tarnawa in the BC Turf, the final start of the year for the 5-year-old gelding. Earlier in 2020, Lord North won two stakes, including the Group 1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes at 1 1/4 miles at Royal Ascot in June.
In the $4 million Dubai Turf, Lord North is expected to be a slight favorite at about 2-1 in a field of 13. The race does not have any American-based participants and lost a runner in the middle of the week with the scratch of Regal Reality, a two-time Group 3 winner in England.
The Dubai Turf is the second Group 1 appearance of the year for Lord Glitters, an 8-year-old gelding trained by David O’Meara. Lord Glitters, who was 7-2 on Thursday, won the Group 1 Jebel Hatta Stakes at about 1 1/8 miles on March 6 at Meydan, the key local prep for the Dubai Turf.
Lord Glitters is a four-time group stakes winner who was ninth in the BC Mile at Santa Anita in 2019, the year he won the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Al Suhail, third in the $260,000 Jebel Hatta, will have his second start since July in the Dubai Turf. Trained by Charlie Appleby for Godolphin Racing, Al Suhail led in the stretch of the Jebel Hatta, but was beaten a half-length in what should serve as a suitable prep for Saturday’s tougher test.