It has not been one of the more memorable Dubai World Cup Carnivals so far, but Turkish raider Suzi Gold should inject a dose of spice when the mare runs in the Group 2 Balanchine at Meydan Racecourse tonight.
Meydan has been graced by challengers from Singapore and India in recent seasons, but the Carnival is set to step up a gear with Suzi Gold’s presence and next week, potentially, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid’s Australian challenger Tashbeeh.
Two weeks ago, Suzi Gold arrived from Turkey, but her reputation had preceded her, having landed the Presidency Cup, Turkey’s all-age open Group 1 race, in October.
Beating the colts capped a campaign in which she also won the Turkish 1,000 Guineas and Oaks.
The four-year-old bay has won eight of her 16 starts and she brings experience at the highest level that none of her eight rivals tonight can match.
Watch a replay of the Presidency Cup and it is difficult to believe that there will be a rival that possesses her tenacity, either.
Suzi Gold will be ridden by Ozcan Yildirim, who rode a four-timer at Izmir Racecourse on Sunday before leaving for Dubai. Trainer Kamil Arda expressed confidence, in an interview with the Turkish Jockey Club.
“The preparations have been very good,” he said. “Our horse is in better shape than last year when she won the Presidency Cup. I hope we get a result that delights Turkey.”
Turkish horses have a strong record in World Cup Carnival races in the past decade, with 20 previous runners producing four winners. It is a victory rate bettered only by raiders from Australia.
Should Suzi Gold prove a hit she may have a chance to run on World Cup night, where the record of Turkish horses stands at seven attempts for one runner-up spot.
The rise of Turkish runners is a result of the groundwork that has been laid by their popular international races each September. Godolphin, for instance, have been frequent visitors to Veliefendi Racecourse in Istanbul.
Three Group 1 victories, in whatever racing jurisdiction, is not to be sniffed at, especially when the pool of fillies and mares at an elite level in Dubai is so small.
It is a division ripe for picking and Suzi Gold looks primed for a big run.
Arda highlighted that the mare Cladocera is Suzi Gold’s main rival and he is right to single out Alain de Royer-Dupre’s runner.
The French mare won the Cape Verdi in some style three weeks ago when she beat six of tonight’s rivals with a finishing burst that looks unlikely to be bettered by any of those she dispatched.
Under tonight’s partner, Christophe Soumillon, Cladocera came off a steady pace to streak away from Zurigha. Brazilian horse Energia Fribby is the other runner in the race who has shown anything better than handicap form.
Cladocera covered the final 100 metres in 5.77 seconds and was motoring along at just over 62kph. It was not as if Soumillon had her at full stretch, either.
Such pace would not be out of place over 1,400 metres, so tonight’s test over 1,800 metres may stretch Cladocera, who is by Oasis Dream, a sprinter who can also pass down stamina.
Cladocera is unproven over any distance further than 1,600 metres, having been eased down on her only try at 1,800 metres, in June.
Suzi Gold is versatile over a variety of distances – the Presidency Cup is staged over 2,400 metres – and with her will to win there is the suspicion you may well get a discount in one of the Turkish restaurants in Umm Suqeim tonight.
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