Takaful Takes the Stage
Kiaran McLaughlin is well-versed in what it takes to do well in Dubai, having trained here for many years. The former D. Wayne Lukas assistant-turned-multiple G1 winner in his own right is coming back with a serious chance of winning one of the country’s biggest races, the 1200m $2 million Dubai Golden Shaheen sponsored by Gulf News (G1), with Shadwell Stables’ Takaful.
“We’re looking at it strongly,” McLaughlin said. “He’s always been a little difficult to train, so we are just making sure he’s 110% and looking seriously at coming with him. He just ran a very good race where he was hooked every step of the way and went 22 and 45 and the track wasn’t that fast that day. It was a hard race and he carried top weight, so he got a lot out of the race. He’s doing well, so hopefully that all goes well the next two weeks.
“You have to have the right horse to come to Dubai,” he continued. “We think he is the right horse. He has a great mind. He’s not in need of medications, and that’s important, and he does everything right. Nothing bothers him, really, it’s just that he can get very keen when he goes to the track to train.”
In his 2018 bow, the dark bay 4-year-old son of Bernardini finished third – pipped at the line for second – in the Toboggan Stakes (G3) at Aqueduct in New York. The 1400m race saw him set the pace from the inside, while under constant pressure, and then run hard to the wire. In 2017, he capped his season with a subpar 10th in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) at Del Mar, but had won the Vosburgh (G1) one race prior at Belmont Park and finished second in the H. Allen Jerkens (G1) five weeks prior to that.
The Shadwell homebred is part of what is arguably the strongest assemblage of American sprinters in the history of the Dubai Golden Shaheen. If the race holds together, it feasibly could be one of the best sprint races anywhere in years.
Other Dubai Golden Shaheen possibles: Roy H, Mind Your Biscuits, X Y Jet, D B Pin, My Catch, Comicas, Reynaldothewizard, Raven’s Corner, Muarrab
Press Release // Dubai Racing Club