Thursday, September 2, 2010

The new Meydan Racecourse will host ten races next season, while Jebel Ali, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi will all have prominent roles in the fixture list.

With the transition of racing from Nad Al Sheba to the new Meydan Racecourse, Jebel Ali will host the opening meeting of the season for the first time since 2002/2003 and will host 14 fixtures, kicking off with the season-opener on Friday, November 6.  

The opening weekend of racing will be a triple-header, with racing returning to the Sharjah Equestrian and Racing Club for the first time since the 2007/2008 season. The first of Sharjah’s four meetings of the season will be on Saturday, November 7, while the Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club will complete the opening weekend with the first of the 17 scheduled fixtures to be held on November 8.

Meydan will conduct its first meeting on Thursday, January 28 and will run ten Dubai International Racing Carnival fixtures. That includes the 15th anniversary of the Dubai World Cup which will be held on Saturday, March 27.

Meanwhile, Godolphin were celebrating a second Grade One win Stateside in a week after Flashing roared home in the Test Stakes at Saratoga.

The three-year-old filly, previously well beaten by Rachel Alexandra over nine furlongs, bounced back under Richard Migliore to win the seven-furlong dirt contest in style.

That followed on from Seventh Street’s victory in the Go For Wand Stakes, and Flashing’s fifth win in seven races delighted trainer Saeed Bin Suroor.
He said: “This filly is tough. She has run a big race to beat some good fillies. Seven furlongs suits her much better.”

Elsewhere, Urban Poet returned to the Godolphin banner after a brave third in the Gordon Stakes at Glorious Goodwood.