Dubai: Horse trading is big business — globally.

* Image Credit: Zarina Fernandes/Gulf News * Saeed Humaid Al Tayer said Meydan is working to realise the vision of an integrated lifestyle destination that caters to every aspect of the equine industry from horse racing and hospitality to the training centre and breeding of horses.

For example, more than two million people own horses in the United States — the biggest market for the horse trade.

There are 9.2 million horses in the US. Total tax paid by the industry to the US government reached $1.9 billion in recent years.

The horse racing industry contributes about 2 to 2.5 per cent to US gross domestic product (GDP), according to industry reports. More info

Almoe AV Systems has installed more than 4,500 Electro-Voice speakers in Dubai’s Meydan Racecourse and Hotel complex. Meydan City is the latest large-scale showcase project in the Arab Emirate of Dubai, and features a marina, five-star hotel complex, IMAX cinema and the Meydan Racecourse.

The Meydan racecourse is capable of accommodating more than 60,000 spectators at a time.  The construction required a huge audio-installation, including more than 4,500 Electro-Voice loudspeakers, fully redundant CobraNet infrastructure using the N8000 NetMax Digital Matrix Controllers and CPS multi-channel amps.

Dubai master developer Meydan will help build a $4bn ‘equine culture city’, according to the terms of a joint venture agreement signed on Wednesday.

The firm, which completed the world’s largest racecourse in the emirate earlier this year, will tie up with International Equine Group (IEG), itself made up a consortium of Meydan, Malaysia’s Teo A Khing Design Consultants and an agribusiness entity owned by the Chinese government.

The new consortium – called Hua Zhi Jie Horse Industries – will develop the Tianjin Equine Culture City, a 3.3m square metre site located in the north-eastern Chinese city.

The project will feature racetracks, training tracks and stables, as well as other equine facilities.

Hua Zhi Jie is hoping to stage a flat-racing event at the site “not dissimilar to the scale of the Dubai World Cup” as early as 2012.

“Meydan’s success since its launch and its continued growth potential makes it an excellent model to replicate in a burgeoning economy such as China’s,” said Saeed Humaid Al Tayer, chairman and CEO of Meydan.

“It is a significant partnership and we are very bullish about the growth prospects presented there. We hope to lend our expertise and extensive experience in positioning horse racing, so that it not only promotes the sport, but supports its related industries and provides viable economic returns to the people of China.”

In a statement, Meydan said that the potential for the horse-racing industry in China was considerable, especially given the direct economic impact of the sector on the economies of the US, the UK and Australia. The developer said that the industry was worth $39bn in the US alone. Meydan to help build Chinese ‘equine city’

Dubai developer signs JV deal to drive race industry development

Dubai master developer Meydan will help build a new ‘equine culture city’, according to the terms of a joint venture agreement signed on Wednesday.

The firm, which completed the world’s largest racecourse in the emirate earlier this year, will tie up with International Equine Group (IEG), itself made up a consortium of Meydan, Malaysia’s Teo A Khing Design Consultants and an agribusiness entity owned by the Chinese government.

The new consortium – called Hua Zhi Jie Horse Industries – will develop the Tianjin Equine Culture City, a 3.3m square metre site located in the north-eastern Chinese city.

The project will feature racetracks, training tracks and stables, as well as other equine facilities.

Hua Zhi Jie is hoping to stage a flat-racing event at the site “not dissimilar to the scale of the Dubai World Cup” as early as 2012.

“Meydan’s success since its launch and its continued growth potential makes it an excellent model to replicate in a burgeoning economy such as China’s,” said Saeed Humaid Al Tayer, chairman and CEO of Meydan

“It is a significant partnership and we are very bullish about the growth prospects presented there. We hope to lend our expertise and extensive experience in positioning horse racing, so that it not only promotes the sport, but supports its related industries and provides viable economic returns to the people of China.”

In a press statement, Meydan said that the potential for the horse-racing industry in China was considerable, especially given the direct economic impact of the sector on the economies of the US, the UK and Australia. The developer said that the industry was worth $39bn in the US alone.

Meydan today announced the launch of its revamped corporate website, www.meydan.ae. The improvements to the website were introduced to enhance organisational visibility internationally and facilitate focused and streamlined communication channels for Meydan City.

The website clearly positions Meydan as a dynamic location with an environment that presents a multitude of possibilities for business, entertainment and sports.

The new interactive flash multimedia interface with informational hotspots presents a visual and highly interactive walkthrough of the entire development. Serving as a comprehensive information source, the website also includes in-depth details on Meydan City’s individual districts – Meydan Racecourse, Meydan Metropolis, Meydan Horizons and Meydan Godolphin Parks. The website also serves as a gateway to the Dubai Racing Club (DRC), the Dubai Equestrian Club (DEC) and the Emirates Equestrian Centre (EEC) websites, which form part of Meydan City Corporation.

Enhanced navigation tools built into the website include quick access panels to each district, land sales, leasing, the racing season and conferences and events, as well as the latest news and media releases. Potential investors are given the chance to interact, give feedback and gain further insight into Meydan’s plans.

Detailed floor plans of Meydan Grandstand’s Corporate Suites can now also be viewed online, allowing clients to select and book a suite with ease. Information on other hospitality options and restaurants at Meydan Grandstand is also available.

A dedicated media centre also provides information on the latest news, with the option for media downloads of high resolution images. The Gallery showcases images of each distinct district, and videos of an overview of Meydan City, Meydan Grandstand’s construction time lapse sequence, the official launch of Meydan Grandstand and Racecourse and the 15th Dubai World Cup, a 3D walkthrough of Meydan Grandstand and Racecourse, and The Meydan hotel.

Mr. Mohammad A. Nasser Al Khayat, Commercial Director of Meydan, said of the Meydan website, “The improved meydan.ae website showcases the Meydan City development through a comprehensive and progressive information portal. As it is a phased project, it is important for us to communicate and showcase the on-going progress of Meydan City to our investors, partners and the international media and audience at large. As we continue to reach out to a wider client base worldwide, the website also serves as a complete primary reference point. As a technology adopter, it is vital that we use technology and the internet to its best advantage, and that Meydan is accurately showcased as an international brand representing a new, dynamic and progressive development with its myriad of offerings.”

With over fifteen years experience working in the international fashion industry, the Paris based event organizers, Kallista Fashions, will host their first business to business fashion fair, Fashion Times Dubai. As a region witnesses sustained growth in the fashion industry, Fashion Times Dubai is set to become a top business to business trade fair that brings together the fashion community from around the world.

The Meydan Grandstand.

International and regional designers are expected to exhibit at the event and buyers from the Middle East have also been invited to attend the much awaited event. Taking place at the prestigious Meydan Grandstand, Fashion Times Dubai is a three-day fair and will take place from 19th – 21st October.

Operating from the fashion capital Paris means that Kallista Fashions resides amongst the top designer labels and a continuous fashion buzz. Having extensive experience in fashion, Kallista Fashions founder Tariq Shan has been responsible for many fashion trade events and fashion showrooms and have played a prominent role in discovering emerging designer talent.

He was the co-founder of Zip Zone Paris which worked with many respected designers including Vivien Westwood, Alessandro dell’ Aqua and Preen and they were the pioneers of introducing the concept of fashion and art. Having hosted several fashion events in art galleries to showcase new collections and labels, they have set trends which has since become a highly successfully and widely used.

Fashion Times Dubai will be a platform to showcase women’s Spring/Summer 2011 collections, including shoes, bags, accessories, scarves and prêt-a-porter. Designers from around the world will be exhibiting their latest collections for top buyers from clothing boutiques to department stores from across the Middle East and Asia.

“Being the region’s hub, we believe Dubai is the perfect location to host Fashion Times event. As the dynamics within the fashion industry constantly changing, the city has embraced the movement and it is destined to make an imprint on the global fashion map. The global recession has affected the entire industry and we feel that through Fashion Times Dubai, buyers do not have to travel to the international exhibitions as they will be able to meet these designers right here. We aim to give designers a strong platform to introduce their work to buyers and to build business ties with them as well as allow buyers to enjoy a spectrum of designers from different markets” said Tariq Shan, Director, Kallista Fashions.

Kallista Fashions aims to make Fashion Times Dubai a regular seasonal event on the international fashion calendar as Dubai cements its position as a major player in the fashion industry. Meydan Grandstand with its five star amenities and unique location is the ideal venue and will facilitate the designers to promote their products in a business environment.

Fashion Times Dubai will be taking place at the Meydan Grandstand from 19th – 21st October 2010.

Ahmed Ajtebi was racing camels until he sat down to lunch with the Ruler of Dubai. Now he is a familiar face in paddocks across the horse-racing world, with his sights set on an Epsom Derby win. Jonny Beardsall meets the UAE’s only home-grown jockey.

Ajtebi rides Dubawi Phantom in the Jaguar All-New XJ Autumn Stakes at Ascot last October. Scott Harvey / Action Images

From the sanctuary of the jockeys’ room at Newmarket racecourse, a diminutive rider from Dubai flashes his beaming smile on a warm July evening in eastern England. “I’m Ahmed Ajtebi. I’ll shower and be with you in a minute,” he says in good, cheerful English, before skedaddling back into the thatched-roofed building to change from royal blue silks to a smart grey suit.

Not that this most likeable 29-year-old, a one-time camel jockey, could be mistaken for anyone else. With deep olive skin, sunken chestnut eyes and short dark hair, he is more supremely skinny than short. His narrow face and chiselled cheekbones imply that he counts the calories, although, at a shade more than 51 kilos, he is sylphlike and so has no need to suffer the extreme deprivation that many jockeys put themselves through.

Another win three days earlier, riding for one of the two super-power Godolphin stables of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, the Ruler of Dubai, had taken Ajtebi’s career tally to 96, a magic number that sees him turn from apprentice to senior jockey.

Given that the sheikh’s other yard retains the celebrated Frankie Dettori – who has ridden more than 3,000 winners – you can imagine Ajtebi has to pinch himself everyday to check he isn’t dreaming.

Simon Crisford, Godolphin’s racing manager, says he doesn’t need to. “Ahmed has done really well. It’s great having him working for our stable and he’s a very popular member of the team. He is an extremely nice man.”

Two years ago Ajtebi’s perfect white teeth first grinned from the sports pages when he became the only Emirati jockey to ride a winner at Royal Ascot. A year later he pulled off the double of his life for Godolphin at the World Cup in Nad al Sheba when he took the Dubai Duty Free race with an inspired piece of front-running on the locally trained Gladiatorus. The same day he snatched victory on the line on Eastern Anthem in a thrilling three-way finish in the Dubai Sheema Classic.

“It was amazing. I was an apprentice and in the space of half an hour I’d ridden two Group 1 winners and won £4 million (Dh22 million) in prize money. Best of all, my dad was there to see me,” he says.

It got better. In November, he won at the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in Santa Anita, California, entering the winner’s enclosure on Vale of York with the UAE flag draped across his back.

This afternoon in Newmarket is bread-and-butter stuff. He has come fifth in a lowly race for two-year-old fillies worth £4,000 (Dh22,000) to the winner. In the unsaddling enclosure he exchanges a few thoughts with trainer Mahmood al Zarooni, also from Dubai, and then sets off across the manicured lawns to weigh-in, his tiny saddle over his forearm, his working day almost done.

As the UAE’s only home-grown jockey, Ajtebi is still pretty unfathomable to British racing. Some will say that purely royal connections – he is the nephew of one of Sheikh Mohammed’s long-standing friends, Saeed Manana – provide his golden opportunities. It is likely that some are envious but none can say that he isn’t making the most of his advantages. He comes with implacable self-belief and, so far, it hasn’t deserted him in or out of the saddle.

“People look at me and say this is the guy from Dubai. I feel that when I ride I do so for my country,” he says, glancing at his showy Chopard wristwatch with the lapis lazuli face, which is thicker than his wrist. “I can’t stop now. I love it and always try my best for those supporting me.”

But unlike most of his weighing room colleagues who could ride before they could walk, Ajtebi didn’t sit on a horse until he was 22. Not that he lacked racecourse experience: as a precocious six-year-old, he was race-riding camels at home, only putting away his whip at 14 when his weight rose above 25kg. By then, he had amassed more than 200 winners from 3,000 rides, mostly for his father, who died last year.

“Dad owned and trained 50 animals a 25-minute drive from the centre of Dubai city,” says Ajtebi.

Seven years ago, when still very much involved with training his father’s camels, he fell into conversation over lunch with Sheikh Mohammed. “He said the UAE had horses in training everywhere in the world, but Dubai had no jockey and would I like the chance to become one. I told him that I had never ridden a horse in my life, but he pushed me.”

In 2003, he and two other Dubai-born apprentices were sent to Ireland to gain experience. Ajtebi was seconded to trainer John Oxx’s stable for four months. “I couldn’t speak any English – I picked it up because I had to,” he says. Back in Dubai, he had his first ride at Nad Al Sheba and became apprenticed to the Dubai trainer Ali al Raihe. His first win came a year later on Al Tharb at Geelong, Australia, where he incurred a Dh600 fine for his over-exuberant celebrations.

After two summers in South Africa he arrived in England in 2007. Clive Brittain, the much-revered Newmarket trainer, became his mentor. “Ahmed came to me as an ordinary apprentice. I find him very genuine. I was very impressed with his work and his dedication. I gave him 17 rides and he rode six winners and he rides one for me tomorrow,” he says.

Since then Ajtebi has remained on a merry-go-round, which takes him from the UAE, where he rides in winter, to Britain, where he rides all summer, with short missions to Europe, the US, Australia and South Africa.

“Britain is the place to improve in racing because it has so many different racecourses,” he says. “Last year I rode a double at the new course, Ffos Las, in Wales, on the day it opened, which made me feel really good.”

Ajtebi has come a long way from racing camels, a ride with scant similarities to a racehorse. “They both have four legs and run very fast,” he says, laughing out loud, which he does often. “The saddles are different, you have no irons, you have one rein and a long camel stick, which you use to try and keep it straight.” Still smiling he hops into his smart Mercedes, for the short drive to his home.

Ajtebi lives alone in Duchess Park, a 26-acre new development in a splurge of tree-lined green space to the south side of Newmarket’s High Street. For a while he has felt like a desert nomad. Although someone has now moved in next door, most of the recently built houses remain unoccupied.

His is a smart yet unremarkable five-bedroom home with a garden in which only a satellite dish has been planted; it badly needs someone to make an oasis, to create the smells an Arab must miss, to grow fruit and roses on the empty lawn.

“Welcome, do come in,” he says, unlocking the white door and stepping inside. He is polite, helpful and courteous; he pours coffee for me and tea without milk for himself with one spoon of sugar. He opens a box of dark chocolates from Harrods and switches off the World Cup that was playing to itself on the large screen television in the sitting room.

He has a young family in Dubai. “My wife, Tahani, stays in Dubai where the children are at school. I have three girls – Mezna, eight, Dhabya, three, and Bakhita, two – and one boy, Mohammed, who is seven, with another child on the way,” he says. “I hope they’ll be coming over soon. I ring home all the time. I sometimes call my mum twice a day, before and after a race.”

His rooms are starkly unrevealing; furnished in the bland style of a show home, the neutral-hued walls and carpets, leather sofas, chairs and coffee table and the shiny kitchen and the beds came with the house. But for framed photographs of Sheikh Mohammed and another of one of the ruler’s sons riding in endurance races and a small snapshot above the fireplace of himself – with a beard – riding in the US, all other meaningless pictures were here when he moved in.

“I don’t have time for furniture shopping,” he says, which is true. Like most professional Flat jockeys he doesn’t have a moment in summer for anything other than racing. “In Britain you are always travelling. Tomorrow I will ride in Newmarket before riding at Doncaster and Newcastle, so I won’t be back till late. The next day, I’ll get up at 5am, drive to Stansted airport, then fly to ride in the Irish Derby. Again I won’t be home before midnight.”

So how does he find his way about? “Sometimes I have a driver, but often I drive myself. It’s easy with satellite navigation… I find the postcode for the course, then away I go. I don’t need a map.”

The Racing Post – the British horse racing daily newspaper – is the extent of his reading material. He doesn’t possess many books, and racing is all he watches on TV, usually his own rides, which he pre-records for post mortems. The weekend we meet, Glastonbury Festival, Wimbledon Tennis Championships and the World Cup are all being staged but he has no interest in any of them, he says.

On a low coffee table lies a recently opened packet of dates. “They give me energy. I’m the only one in the weighing room eating dates. No one else really likes them, so I can safely leave them lying around.” On a worktop, the drifting fragrance from a ceramic jar of aromatic oil fills the rooms, reminding him of the souks and marbled halls back home.

He has a cleaner, so the place is immaculate. There isn’t much in his giant stainless-steel fridge: lettuce, tomatoes, a few eggs, nothing too enticing. “I can cook but, actually, I’m not a big eater. I go to the supermarket in town and live a European life. I’m used to it. My weight is good. But I don’t go drinking or clubbing, I’m not that sort of person.”

Unselfconsciously, he underlines his special relationship with the Ruler of Dubai. He is seeing him later that evening at the Shiekh’s mansion on the edge of town. “Like my car, this house was a gift from him [Sheikh Mohammed]. He feels like he’s my dad. When my father passed away last year, he became closer to me. He treats me as if I am his son.

“He has pushed me so hard… with his money, his horses and his experience.”

So how on earth does Ajtebi cope with the weight of so much expectation? He pauses. “He never puts me under pressure. He has taught me to say what I think. If I disagree about the distance a horse needs or how to ride it, he wants me to say so, and we speak on the phone before and after every race.”

Ajtebi is determined to win the Epsom Derby one day. He had his first ride in the race this year on Buzzword after flying in from Newmarket with his boss in his helicopter. He came eighth. “For me it is the greatest race in the world and I loved riding in front of the Queen of England. One day I hope I’ll succeed,” he says.

As one of only a handful of jockeys riding for stables that always run horses in the Derby, it is not implausible that one day this extraordinarily lucky man just might just pull it off.

The aura of Goldikova (Ire) (Anabaa) hovered over Berkshire for a second day of the Royal Ascot meeting Wednesday, one day after the brilliant miler delivered the first winning stroke to open up the five-day stand.

Byword had the last word in the Prince of Wales's (Frank Sorge/Horsephotos.com)

The hero on Day 2 of England’s most prestigious fixture was BYWORD (Peintre Celebre), a victim of Goldikova in the May 23 Prix d’Ispahan (Fr-G1), who held off fellow Prince Khalid Abdulla-colorbearer Twice Over (Observatory) by a half-length in notching the £450,000 Prince of Wales’s S. (Eng-G1) over 1 1/4 miles. The four-year-old homebred, conditioned in France by Andre Fabre, covered the distance in 2:05.35 over a course rated good-to-firm, good in places.

Like several of the favored winners the previous day, Byword, the 5-2 choice, enjoyed an ideal trip throughout. Tracking in fourth under Maxime Guyon, Byword was always in position to pounce when called upon, rating behind 40-1 pacesetter Tazeez (Silver Hawk), who was followed closely by German invader Wiener Walzar (Dynaformer) and Debussy (Diesis [GB]). Shifted off the inside entering the straight, Byword was forced a little wide by a couple rivals but maintained his momentum inside the final quarter-mile. Finally getting past a determined Tazeez, Byword held on gamely as Twice Over, near the back for much of the running, uncorked his rally too late. The 11-2 second choice Twice Over, last year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) third-placer, had three parts of a length on Tazeez at the finish.

Byword, who did not debut until June of last year, placed fourth in both Group outings last season, but has made great strides this term. After prevailing in a listed event at Maisons-Laffitte on April 8, the chestnut ran Goldikova to a half-length in the Prix d’Ispahan at Longchamp, admittedly at a distance slightly beyond the mare’s best.

“I knew he had the ability to win and I was impressed by the ride as I was fearful he could get boxed in,” Fabre revealed. “He has matured. He wasn’t trained much at three because he had a virus and now he is really coming to himself.

“You could call him a revelation as his form as a three-year-old was not at that level, but we have always though he is a really good horse.”

This initial Group 1 triumph follows closely on the success at the highest level of Byword’s half-sister Proviso (GB) (Dansili [GB]), a multiple Group 3 winner in France who has captured the Frank E. Kilroe Mile H. (G1) and Just a Game S. (G1) in her two turf outings this season. For the time being, Fabre intends to keep Byword at distances dominated by his sibling in America.

“He is a horse that can go for the big mile races; he won’t go farther than 10 furlongs,” Fabre said. “Maybe something like the Prix Jacques le Marois (Fr-G1) next.

“I am not sure he can stay further and although the (Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe [Fr-G1]) is a long way off it has to be a doubt. He needs good ground, too, and is unlikely to get that in Paris in October.”

The effort by Twice Over, last year’s Champion S. (Eng-G1) winner who finished 10th, beaten three lengths, in the Dubai World Cup (UAE-G1) in his most recent outing, satisfied trainer Henry Cecil despite the troubled trip.

“He got blocked in and couldn’t get out, and then he was too far back,” Cecil said. “He ran a super race but it wasn’t enough. I hope we’ll go to the Champion S., but that’s up to the Prince.”

Sir Michael Stoute and Ryan Moore, the trainer-jockey combo successful with Abdulla’s Workforce (King’s Best) in the Epsom Derby (Eng-G1) two weeks ago, tasted Royal success in the £125,000 Windsor Forest S. (Eng-G2) when their gray filly STRAWBERRYDAIQUIRI (Dansili [GB]) prevailed over defending champion Spacious (Nayef) in a head-to-head battle that lasted more than a quarter-mile. Neither giving an inch to the other through the long stretch, Strawberrydaiquiri eventually pipped Spacious by a short head while completing the straight mile in 1:38.04. Antara (Platini), the 7-2 favorite, was three lengths farther back in third.

The Windsor Forest was the sixth win in the eight-race career of Strawberrydaiquiri, a three-time listed winner who notched her first pattern victory by a similar margin in the May 2 Dahlia S. (Eng-G3) at Newmarket, where Spacious was fourth lengths third.

Moore achieved his first victory of the Royal meeting in the opening £80,000 Jersey S. (Eng-G3), guiding the Mark Johnston-trained filly RAINFALL (Oasis Dream [GB]) over an otherwise all-male cast to a head decision over the determined early pacesetter Red Jazz (Johannesburg). The seven-furlong dash for three-year-olds was completed in 1:24.94.

A veteran of only two previous starts, Rainfall had won her debut May 1 at Thirsk by six lengths before bowing by less than a length in a listed event at Sandown May 29.

The first significant event of the meeting for two-year-old fillies, the £90,000 Queen Mary S. (Eng-G2), went to 9-4 favorite MAQAASID (Green Desert) for trainer John Gosden and jockey Richard Hills. The strong choice off a half-length debut score at Sandown, Maqaasid registered a neck decision over 7-2 chance Meow (Storm Cat) in a time of :59.17 for five furlongs.

“Her obvious aim is the Cheveley Park (S. [Eng-G1]) and she’ll tell me if she needs to run in between then,” Gosden said.

Maqaasid counts as a fourth dam the English champion juvenile filly Height of Fashion (Fr) (Bustino), who produced standouts such as dual classic winner Nashwan (Blushing Groom [Fr]) and English highweight Nayef (Gulch). She is also the ancestress of U.S. champion turf mare Lahudood (GB) (Singspiel [Ire]) and English classic winner Ghanaati (Giant’s Causeway).

Maqaasid also hails from the family of Grade 1 winner Ask (GB) (Sadler’s Wells), who holds entry in Thursday’s Gold Cup (Eng-G1) at Royal Ascot, as well as Japanese superstar Deep Impact (Sunday Silence). Both descend from Maqaasid’s fifth dam, the dual classic-winning Highclere (GB) (Queen’s Hussar).

TIMEPIECE (Zamindar), an early favorite for the Epsom Oaks (Eng-G1) prior to a second-place effort in the Lingfield Oaks Trial, rebounded from her ninth in the June 4 classic at Epsom with a 1 1/4-length triumph in the £50,000 Sandringham H. A consolation prize for Cecil and jockey Tom Queally following Twice Over’s earlier defeat, the Abdulla homebred completed the straight mile in 1:38.53.

Godolphin registered its first Royal Ascot success with INVISIBLE MAN (Elusive Quality) in the £100,000 Royal Hunt Cup, annually one of the best betting races of the Royal meeting. Conditioned by Saeed bin Suroor and ridden by Frankie Dettori, Invisible Man prevailed by a half-length in a time of 1:37.16 for the straight mile. One of the most noted handicaps of the English flat season, the Royal Hunt Cup featured 29 runners.

Calming Influence takes on some of the world’s top milers today when he makes his first start in Europe since November in the Group One Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Ahmad Ajtebi rides Calming Influence to victory in the Godolphin Mile at Meydan. Pawan Singh / The National

The five-year-old son of King’s Best gave Mahmood al Zarooni his first win when quickening well to land the Group Two Godolphin Mile on Tapeta at Meydan Racecourse but the Godolphin trainer knows he and his jockey Ahmed Atjebi face a tough task to repeat that victory today.

“Calming Influence is well and fit but it looks like it is a very tough renewal of the Queen Anne Stakes this year,” said al Zarooni.“He won nicely out in Dubai and he is in good form at the moment, but he hasn’t run since March and there might be a question mark over him running well over a straight mile – he loved the bends around Meydan.”

Calming Influence lines up against nine others in the Ascot dual, including Breeders’ Cup Mile heroine Goldikova, last year’s winner Paco Boy and Rip Van Winkle, who scored over a mile at Ascot in the Group One Queen Elizabeth II Stakes last year. However, Aidan O’Brien has voiced genuine concerns about Rip Van Winkle.

“Rip Van Winkle is in good form and we think that he has done really well from three to four and definitely gone the right way,” the trainer told The Racing Post. “But because he hasn’t had a run this year, we are genuinely worried about his fitness, as most of our horses usually come on a good bit from their first run.”
Godolphin has won the Queen Anne Stakes seven times, through Charnwood Forest (1996), Allied Forces (1997), Intikhab (1998), Cape Cross (1999), Dubai Destination (2003), Refuse To Bend (2004) and Ramonti (2007).