DUBAI: Beneath the thin veneer of razzamatazz here at Meydan on Saturday night will be a handful of men and women trying desperately to contain their nerves.
The Dubai World Cup is racing’s most international fixture and with $30 million on the line there is no bigger payday on the world stage.
The bumper prize-money has attracted horse people from all over the world, but with that heightened competition comes increased pressure.
Quite simply, there is nothing else like it in racing and scratch the surface only a little bit and it is easy to see the searching souls of the participants. Bob Baffert has won the Dubai World Cup three times and seeks a fourth win with favorite West Coast on Saturday.
The silver-haired 65-year-old is in the autumn of his career and should by now have worked out a way to manage the burden of competing at the highest level. Not a bit of it. This is a man who six years ago suffered a heart attack at the onset of World Cup week and was visited personally by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, ruler of Dubai, in hospital.
“There is always pressure in these big races when you have a good horse,” Baffert said on Tuesday. “If I had an outsider then I’d be just glad to be here but when you have a horse who can win, that is something else.
“There is always tension because things can go wrong, just like that. You are never safe until they get in to the gate. Once the jockey is on board, that is the only time I feel completely relieved and then I just see what report card I’m going to get. From there it is out of my control.”
Baffert must have felt close to further heart surgery 12 months ago when Arrogate, then the world’s best horse, gave subsequent Breeders’ Cup winner Gun Runner a huge start before scything him down in the closing stages to claim the $10 million purse.
“It was horrible. I was so mad I couldn’t even enjoy the race. I couldn’t even believe what was going on. That was a race for the ages. It was thrilling. It was one of those races that left a mark. That was Arrogate’s coming out party. It was the ‘wow, look at this guy,’ and then the story went bang.
“I am as nervous as ever, but it is different. Last year there was a lot of pressure because Arrogate was owned by Prince Khalid Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and I didn’t want him beaten in his own backyard — there are a lot of bragging rights going on here.
“That was definitely the greatest performance I will ever see. What he did that night was incredible.”
If Baffert is an old hand at trying to control a racing pulse, Chad Summers is a relative newcomer. Summers turned his back on a burgeoning media career to become a trainer and last year had saddled just a handful of horses before Mind Your Biscuits came from way off the pace to scoop the $2 million Dubai Golden Shaheen. The sprinter is among the favorites to win the dirt contest once again.
A year on, Summers has endured the vicissitudes of life and it would not be beyond the realms of possibility were he to return to the Fourth Estate in the near future.
“There are a lot more downs than ups and although the ups are great, the lows are so low,” he said of a game whereby all participants lose much more than they win.
“People want to give you a horse when you’re a hot commodity and then it is like: ‘Who are you again?’
“There are such short memories in racing — there is not a lot of loyalty and there are a lot of things going on behind the scenes.
“By the time we got to Saratoga (in summer) we had 50 horses in four or five different barns in different locations and were hiring staff with names you don’t remember.
“So that got out of control this summer and I took a step back and have 25 horses right now.
“I remember I had just won the Shaheen, a race worth $2 million and it was 2 a.m. and I’m trying to watch one of my horses in a $30,000 maiden claimer in America and somebody claims it, and then all of a sudden people say you’re not that good a trainer because you can’t win a claimer.
“You have the magnifying glass on you at all times and that is fine, if owners allow you to do things the way you want to do it.”
Neither Baffert nor Summers have quite mined the depths that Peter Miller did in December, however. Miller, who won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint and Turf Sprint in November respectively with Saturday contenders Roy H and Stormy Liberal, lost five horses when 46 horses died in a fire that ripped through San Luis Rey in California.
“It was a nightmare,” an emotional Miller said, recounting the horror. “A barn fire — I wouldn’t set that on my worst enemy. It is something you never want to go through and hopefully I never will again.
“It was traumatic. Some horses were in the clinic for a month with burns and smoke inhalation. Other horses were unscathed. Fortunately most of the horses that survived came back to run well and win. The horse community around the world was extremely generous with their time and money and it was heartwarming. Horses are resilient. Trainers are resilient.”
They clearly need to be.
Dubai World Cup can be the making or breaking of a trainer
Dubai World Cup can be the making or breaking of a trainer
Israeli anthem booed, scuffles seen at France game
- Some 100 Israeli fans come to game despite warning
- * Police seek to avoid violence seen in Amsterdam
PARIS: Some French fans booed the Israeli national anthem and there were minor scuffles inside a sparsely-attended Stade de France on Thursday for a Nations League game overshadowed by frictions around the Gaza war.
Seeking to prevent a repeat of violence in Amsterdam last week around a Europa League game involving Maccabi Tel Aviv, 4,000 French security personnel were deployed in and around the stadium and on public transport.
Some 100 Israel fans defied a warning from their government against traveling for sports events, sitting in a corner of the 80,000-capacity stadium which was barely a fifth full.
With many staying away due to security fears, the 16,611 attendance was the lowest for Les Bleus at the Stade de France since it opened in 1998. The match ended 0-0.
Some boos and whistles were heard during the playing of the Israeli national anthem, which was then turned up on loudspeakers. Israeli fans waved yellow balloons and chanted “Free the Hostages” in reference to compatriots held by Hamas militants.
As the match got underway, there was a melee near the Israel fans’ section for several minutes, with people seen running and punches thrown. Stewards quickly formed a barrier.
It was unclear what had triggered the trouble.
Leading up to the game, several hundred anti-Israeli demonstrators had gathered at a square in Paris’ Saint-Denis district, perimeter, waving Palestinian flags, as well as a few Lebanese and Algerian ones, to protest against the match.
“We don’t play with genocide,” one banner read, in reference to the Gaza war.
At the end of the match, two Palestinian flags were displayed at the south end of the stadium.
Israel denies allegations of genocide in its more than year-long offensive against Hamas.
Macron attends
Going into the ground, some Israel fans wore both Israeli and French colors. Two wore a t-shirt with Israeli club side Maccabi Tel Aviv’s logo on the front and the words “Ni Oubli Ni Pardon” (Never Forgive Never Forget) on the back.
One person held a paper with “f*** Hamas” written on it.
French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said this week there was never any doubt the match would go ahead, following the unrest in Amsterdam which saw both Maccabi fans and local groups engage in violence, according to Dutch police.
He said there were no specific threats identified ahead of the game, but that zero risk did not exist.
French President Emmanuel Macron was at the game in a show of solidarity. “We will not give into anti-Semitism anywhere and violence, including in France, will never prevail, nor will intimidation,” he told BFM TV hours before kickoff.
The match came a day after the ninth anniversary of coordinated Islamist attacks on entertainment venues across the French capital, including the national stadium.
Racism and intolerance are rising in France, fueled in part by the war in Gaza after the Hamas attacks on Israel in October 2023. Similar trends have been witnessed elsewhere in Europe.
Nearly 70 suspects have been arrested and at least five people were injured in last week’s clashes between Maccabi fans and gangs in Amsterdam.
Son scores 50th international goal as South Korea beat Kuwait in World Cup qualifying
- Jordan and Iraq stayed in second and third place on eight points after drawing 0-0 in Basra
- Oman are now two points behind after defeating the Palestinian team 1-0
MELBOURNE: Son Heung-min scored his 50th international goal on Thursday as South Korea beat Kuwait 3-1 to take a big step toward an 11th successive World Cup appearance.
The Tottenham forward converted a penalty to make it 2-0 in the 19th minute and help South Korea earn a fourth successive win in Group B of Asia’s World Cup qualifiers to move five points clear at the top with five games to go.
Oh Se-hun headed in South Korea’s opener in the 10th minute and Son, who had just returned from a hamstring injury, extended the advantage after being fouled in the area. Mohammed Daham pulled a goal back with a spectacular strike with 30 minutes remaining but Bae Jun-ho sealed the win for the visitors.
“(Son is) such an important part of our team,” South Korea coach Hong Myung-bo said. “He just came back after being hobbled by injury.”
Jordan and Iraq stayed in second and third place on eight points after drawing 0-0 in Basra while Oman are now two points behind after defeating the Palestinian team 1-0.
In Group A, Iran defeated North Korea 3-2 in Laos to move onto 13 points, three clear of Uzbekistan which lost 3-2 at Qatar. The 2022 World Cup host stayed in fourth with seven points, level with the United Arab Emirates which defeated Kyrgyzstan 2-0.
In Group C, Australia and Saudi Arabia drew 0-0 in Melbourne and remained level on six points from five games and are joined by China, which defeated Bahrain 1-0 with an injury-time goal from Zhang Yuning. Leader Japan will move seven points clear if they can defeat Indonesia in Jakarta on Friday.
Only the top two of six in each group will qualify automatically for the 2026 World Cup. The third- and fourth-place finishers will advance to the next stage.
McIlroy shares Dubai lead with Ballesteros mark in sight
- McIlroy fired a 67 to stand on top of the leaderboard alongside Tyrrell Hatton
- McIlroy only needs a top ten finish to secure a sixth Race to Dubai crown of his career, matching the tally of Ballesteros
DUBAI: Rory McIlroy claimed a share of the first-round lead at the World Tour Championship in Dubai on Thursday as he closed in on equalling Seve Ballesteros’ mark of six European Tour Order of Merit crowns.
McIlroy fired a 67 to stand on top of the leaderboard alongside Tyrrell Hatton.
The 35-year-old McIlroy started the season-ending event in Dubai with a healthy lead over South Africa’s Thriston Lawrence who endured a nightmare day, signing for a one-over 73 which included five bogeys.
With 2,000 points on offer to the winner, McIlroy only needs a top ten finish to secure a sixth Race to Dubai crown of his career, matching the tally of Ballesteros.
Playing partners Hatton and Paul Waring, who sealed the biggest victory of his career at last week’s Abu Dhabi Championship, hit the front at four under after they each birdied the 14th hole, but the Northern Irishman followed suit shortly after.
Hatton became the first person to reach five under with a birdie at the penultimate hole, only to be matched by McIlroy’s 48-foot putt at the same hole to share the lead with Englishman.
“I thought I played well. I hit the ball pretty well. I gave myself plenty of chances, plenty of looks,” four-time major champion McIlroy said.
“I want to go on from here and win the golf tournament. I’ve opened up with a really good score, but I need to go out and play similarly over these next three days, not just to try to win the tournament, but also to try to get the job done in the Race to Dubai.
“I’m under no illusions that that was probably Thriston’s worst day. If he goes out and has three good ones, I still need to go out there and play some very solid golf.”
Hatton, 33, carded seven birdies and two dropped shots in his round.
Dubai-based Waring reached the turn in 32 before mixing a bogey and birdie on the back nine to sit alone in third at four under.
There are seven players at three under — Billy Horschel, Matt Wallace, Adam Scott, Alex Fitzpatrick, Niklas Norgaard and Japanese duo Keita Nakajima and Rikuya Hoshino.
Jeddah Corniche Circuit to host SAL Jeddah GT Race 2024 on Nov. 29-30
- SAL Jeddah GT Race 2024 consists of two main races, the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe and the GT4 European Series
- Some of the world’s leading drivers and manufacturers will take part in the race
JEDDAH: The Jeddah Corniche Circuit, dubbed the fastest street circuit in the world, is set to host the SAL Jeddah GT Race 2024 for the first time on Nov. 29-30.
The SAL Jeddah GT Race 2024 consists of two main races — the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS, which lasts for six hours and covers 1,000 km with more than 40 teams participating, and the GT4 European Series powered by RAFA Racing, which is 250 km long and features more than 30 teams.
GT racing showcases car models designed for road use that have been expertly modified for high-speed endurance events, often proving to be more powerful and durable than Formula cars, according to a media statement on Thursday.
The championship is sponsored by Fanatec, a leading manufacturer of racing simulation equipment, offering a connection between real and virtual motorsports.
The race will see an array of the world’s leading drivers and manufacturers take part, such as Porsche, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Mercedes, BMW, Audi and Ford.
The primary focus of GT racing is to challenge the endurance of both drivers and cars, particularly in events such as the SAL Jeddah GT Race 2024.
Teams, drivers and spectators are set to make the most of the opportunities offered by the SAL Jeddah GT 2024. Saudi Arabia will again be in the global spotlight as it becomes an important destination for international motorsport stars and racing enthusiasts, in a new championship that stands apart from other regional competitions, the media statement said.
UEFA investigates English ref Coote over footage of alleged drug use at Euro 2024
- “A UEFA ethics and disciplinary inspector has been appointed to evaluate a potential violation of the UEFA disciplinary regulations by the referee, Mr. David Coote,” UEFA said
- The report said the incident was filmed one day after Coote’s last match duty, the quarterfinal between France and Portugal
NYON: UEFA started another investigation into English match official David Coote on Thursday after a video allegedly showed him using cocaine during the European Championship.
“A UEFA ethics and disciplinary inspector has been appointed to evaluate a potential violation of the UEFA disciplinary regulations by the referee, Mr. David Coote,” UEFA said in a statement.
Coote worked as a video review specialist at Euro 2024, where match officials stayed at a hotel near Frankfurt. He was an assistant supporting the lead VAR official at eight games.
British daily The Sun published a video late Wednesday appearing to show Coote snorting the drug using an American banknote.
The report said the incident was filmed one day after Coote’s last match duty, the quarterfinal between France and Portugal. France won a penalty shootout after a 0-0 draw.
Coote was suspended on Monday by the English match referees body after a different cellphone video circulated of him making offensive comments with friends about former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp. That body and the English FA started investigations.
UEFA already withdrew Coote from match duty for national team games this week after the first video was published.
The games he worked at Euro 2024 included host Germany’s 2-0 win over Denmark in the round of 16 that included a controversial penalty award for handball. The lead VAR official at that game, Stuart Attwell, was involved in some of the tournament’s most debated decisions.
