KUUMAR SHYAM (DUBAI)

Magnitude broke the hearts of the Forever Young fans for a second time as the top-rated horse fell short at the Dubai World Cup race meeting at Meydan Racecourse on Saturday. One of the richest races in the world, Jose Ortiz and Magnitude set the early pace but kept on running to take the $12 million race on a night of upsets with Forever Young and Meydaan following the American colt home.

“It’s amazing. Obviously, Forever Young was the best horse in the world, and we had to respect that,” Ortiz said. “But, you know, we knew we had a good enough horse to win the race, and he showed up to it.”

The traditional flagship horse racing event has been a rivalry between American and Japanese horses in recent years on the dirt track at the venue. Hit Show came out of nowhere to beat Yoshito Yahagi’s ward Forever Young last year, and both horses were in the fray again as they tried to emulate Thunder Snow as the only horse to defend his title and win twice in the race’s 30 years of existence now. Instead, it was the Steve Asmussen-trained Magnitude which ruled roost for the American company Winchell Thoroughbreds.

Forever Young, with 11 victories out of 14 starts, finished third last year, but arrived early in Dubai set to become the richest prize-money winning horse and overtake Romantic Warrior. For the main race over 2,000 metres on Saturday, the final stop on the nine-race card, Magnitude was first off the blocks while Forever Young stayed in the middle of the pack waiting for his chance.

With his stall six position at the gates, it was ideal for him, Yahagi had said earlier.

Instead, Magnitude moved away from the rails even as he turned over the final bend and cut off Forever Young’s straight path for a challenge. That slight deviation, along with Magnitude’s staying power, turned out to be enough on a night where only two pre-race favourites managed to add a victory to their name. Ombudsman and Calandaghan justified their top billing in the seventh and eighth races, respectively.

If the first race was set to be an appetiser, reserved for Purebred Arabian horses, then it set up quite a craving for those looking only at the underdogs or outsiders. The Omani representative Al Falaah set the tone for the first six races, coming up with winners from outside the usual circle of top three contenders. 

Banishing, Fairy Glen, Wonder Dean, Native Approach, and Dark Saffron all came up to snub the top favourites with His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, catching all the action from up close. 

It was well overdue for the streak to break, and it did. William Buick and Ombudsman charged past the finishing post for Godolphin, the racing operation of the Dubai ruler, to win by one length’s margin over Quddwah, while another rank outsider, Andreas Vesalius, came in third by a short head’s gap. It was just dessert for the royal who was very keen to host the milestone 30th staging of the Dubai World Cup despite difficulties with the weather and geopolitical situation in the build-up.

Earlier, Daisuke Takayanagi-trained Wonder Dean became the fifth straight Japanese winner of the UAE Derby, following Crown Pride (2022), Derma Sotogake (2023), Forever Young (2024), and Admire Daytona (2025). Each of them also went to Churchill Downs for the G1 Kentucky Derby but could not win; Forever Young went closest, but not close enough. It was another so near, yet so far in hindsight, late on Saturday night.

Our top picks

Gr.1 Kahayla Classic – Falaah, Muraad, Mubeed
Gr.2 Godolphin Mile – Banishing, Commissioner King, Mendelssohn Bay
Gr.2 Gold Cup – Fairy Glen, Caballo de Nar, Al Nayyir
Gr.2 UAE Derby – Wonder Dean, Six Speed, Pyromancer
Gr.1 Al Quoz Sprint – Native Approach, Lugal, Lazzat
Gr.1 Golden Shaheen – Dark Saffron, Bentornato, Cats by Five
Gr.1 Dubai Turf – Ombudsman, Quddwah, Andreas Vesalius
Gr.1 Sheema Classic – Calandagan, West Wind Blows, Giavelloto
Gr.1 Dubai World Cup –Magnitude, Forever Young, Meydaan