RACING/MEYDAN, DUBAI:EVEN THE €4.6 million first prize of the world's richest race won't come any where near compensating the Coolmore empire for the loss of their superstar stallion Montjeu but a success for So You Think in this evening's Dubai World Cup would still constitute major morale booster to John Magnier Co.
The New Zealand-bred, Irish-trained Australian legend who has competed at the highest level in Europe and America is the epitome of the international flavour of the multi-million dollar Meydan extravaganza that is the brainchild of Coolmore’s greatest rivals, the ruling Maktoum family of Dubai.
Horses trained in Ireland, Hong Kong, France, Britain, Japan, South Africa, Singapore, the USA and Australia will line up for the card which features five Group Ones and is shown live on TG4. But in many respects it is the six Aidan O’Brien-trained runners, among the nine-strong Irish challenge, that will again garner the most focus. So You Think was O’Brien’s main standard-bearer in 2011 and while that role is expected to be filled by Camelot in 2012, the decision to send such a high-profile star to Dubai looks significant.
Along with proven top-flight performers, St Nicholas Abbey and Treasure Beach, in the Sheema Classic, and another Breeders’ Cup winner Wrote possibly attempting to earn a Kentucky Derby place in the UAE version, plenty will expect O’Brien to earn top-flight honours in a seventh country.
Whether it will be So You Think or not is debatable however. The ex-Aussie star proved himself top-class in European terms last year without ever reaching the levels that the Coolmore hype suggested we could expect. On the face of it he has a lot going for him today in a good draw and opposition that is certainly strong but without being earth-shattering.
The big American hope Game On Dude finished ahead of So You Think in last autumn’s Breeders’ Cup Classic on dirt but this Tapeta surface should suit a grass horse much better. Japan’s apparent number one Smart Falcon has been prolific on dirt but reportedly hasn’t travelled well to the Middle East.
However, Japan could still back up last year’s success by Victoire Pisa with the 2010 Japanese Derby winner Eishin Flash. Christophe Lemaire’s mount hasn’t won since that big day but is consistent at the top level and found only Japan’s latest superstar Orfevere too good for him last November.
The best Ballydoyle chance may be St Nicholas Abbey, a son of the lamented Montjeu, who bounced back to prominence in the Breeders’ Cup and whose ability to peak without a lot of preparation could be crucial in these circumstances.
Three Irish hopes – Sole Power, Invincible Ash and Nocturnal Affair — line up in the Al Quoz Sprint on turf but the Aussie mare Ortensia has form behind the exceptional Black Caviar.
Meydan: 2.10 - African Story, 2.45 - Opinion Poll, 3.25 - Lucky Chappy, 4.00 - Ortensia, 4.35 The Factor, 5.25 - Wigmore Hall, 6.00- St Nicholas Abbey, 6.40 - Eishin Flash.
