By Alan Carasso
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES — In most circles, Saturday's G1 Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airline was but a foregone conclusion. The star of the show was widely expected to be Japan's Forever Young (Jpn) (Real Steel {Jpn}), a pair of placed efforts in America the only thing separating the colt and a perfect record.
A brilliant winner of the G1 Saudi Cup about 600 miles of desert away six weeks ago, Forever Young surely had his World Cup rivals over a barrel. Any one of them would need to produce a career best to even be in the discussion, and even then, it was unlikely to be good enough.
But horses can't read and races, they're not run on paper, and at the end of 2000 meters on a warm evening in the desert, Wathnan Racing's Hit Show (Candy Ride {Arg}) was the one to pull the rabbit out of the hat, weaving his way through the Meydan stretch to run down Calumet Farm's very game Mixto (Good Magic) and top an American-bred and -based quinella. The Dubai World Cup is a 'Win and You're In' for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic in November.
Florent Geroux, second aboard Gun Runner when he was vanquished by an other-worldly performance from Arrogate in the 2017 World Cup, was pragmatic entering Saturday's contest.
“I'll be honest with you, I was running for a place and he gave me more,” the Frenchman said. “I can't quite believe it. I'll take it though! Gun Runner was such a great horse and he couldn't do it, it was a very tough beat, but Hit Show has done it.”
Geroux, allowed his mount to get back in the field, as Walk of Stars (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) rolled to the front from the inside gate. Mixto tracked from second and Imperial Emperor (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) sat three-deep in the breeze, as Ryusei Sakai tried to find a comfortable spot for Forever Young.
Hit Show still traveled behind centerfield, but things were looking a bit dire for the Forever Young camp with 800 meters to race, as he was not traveling and off the bridle, with Sakai doing his level best to get him motivated. Full of run on the turn, but still quietly ridden, Hit Show still had a good 10 lengths to find, as Walk of Stars and Mixto continued to mix it up on top.
Geroux gave Hit Show his cue with about 500 meters left, decisively taking a split between Katonah (Klimt) and a weakening Imperial Emperor in upper stretch. Steered to the inside of Wilson Tesoro (Jpn) (Kitasan Black {Jpn}) with just less than 200 meters to travel, Hit Show took aim on the joint leaders and raced over the top of them to cause a boilover.
Forever Young never traveled with a modicum of the fluidity or purpose that he did when scoring in Riyadh, but plugged on late to earn the third spot while never a menace to the top two.
“Only at the 100m did I think I could win!” Geroux added. “Forever Young was my target and he was not traveling at all. I tried to find another horse to follow, from there my horse was game. For some reason, he just runs for me all the time, he is amazing.”
Added trainer Brad Cox: “I still can't quite believe it, it's unbelievable. I would have loved to be there but just with so much going on with these 3-year-olds and trying to get to the (Kentucky) Derby, I couldn't make it. However, he was in good hands with the people I sent over with him. It's a great accomplishment and we have a great team that allows us to spread ourselves out and travel when the opportunities are there.”
Hit Show made the first 12 starts of his career for his breeders, winning five of those, including the GII West Virginia Governor's Stakes last August. He carried the Wathnan colors to victory in Keeneland's GII Fayette Stakes in October, then was third, but placed fifth, behind Rattle N Roll (Connect) in the GII Clark Stakes at Churchill in November. A good-looking winner of the GIII Louisiana Stakes in the Fair Grounds slop Jan. 18, he was left better than a dozen lengths behind 'TDN Rising Star' Locked (Gun Runner) in the GI Santa Anita Handicap going Saturday's distance Mar. 1.
“He ran a great race in California and it set him up well,” Cox continued. “The mile and a quarter is his trip, he ran well [when fifth] in the Kentucky Derby and out to a mile and a half [when fourth] in the Belmont, but he hasn't got out in trip properly until his last two starts. We always knew that ground was his thing, the further the better. He's a classy horse, he's shipped all over and now he's a Dubai World Cup winner.”
Mixto was capping an epic afternoon for the Doug O'Neill barn, who won the G2 Godolphin Mile for the second straight year with Raging Torrent (Maximus Mischief).
“I thought Mixto ran lights out and Frankie is just a legend for so many reasons,” the conditioner said. “He had him in a great spot without having to use much of him. I thought he had enough in the end but he got outrun late. He ran super. I'm very proud of everybody.”
The sting of the defeat was palpable in Sakai's post-race comments.
“We had to win this race and I am disappointed,” the jockey said. “He ran a great race in Saudi and I expected him to win if he ran his race, but it was a tough race as he was the horse to beat. It was tough and we did our best. He wasn't traveling at all. It wasn't an easy race and hard to keep winning.”
Despite falling short in the big race, it was another wildly successful night for Japan at Meydan, as their horses won the G2 UAE Derby, the G1 Dubai Turf in another massive upset and the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic.
Pedigree Notes:
A 20th Grade I winner for Candy Ride, Hit Show is one of three winners from four to the races for his dam, victorious in the 2017 GII Black-Eyed Susan Stakes and GIII Comely Stakes. Actress is a daughter of the 2009 Sovereign Award-winning 3-year-old filly Milwaukee Appeal, that year's Woodbine Oaks winner who was also placed in the GI Alabama Stakes, the Queen's Plate and the Prince of Wales Stakes.
The 11-year-old Actress is also responsible for the 3-year-old filly Blind Faith (Medaglia d'Oro), third in a pair of maidens at Horseshoe Indianapolis last fall for the Wests and Brad Cox, and is due to Curlin for this season, having failed to produce foals in either of the last two years.
Saturday, Meydan, Dubai
DUBAI WORLD CUP SPONSORED BY EMIRATES AIRLINE-G1, $12,000,000, Meydan, 4-5, 3yo/up, 10f, 2:03.50, fs.
1–HIT SHOW, 126, h, 5, by Candy Ride (Arg)
1st Dam: Actress (MGSW-US, $545,150), by Tapit
2nd Dam: Milwaukee Appeal, by Milwaukee Brew
3rd Dam: Appealing Forum, by Open Forum
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. O-Wathnan Racing; B-Gary & Mary West
Stables Inc. (KY); T-Brad H. Cox; J-Florent Geroux. $6,960,000.
Lifetime Record: MGSW & GISP-US, 18-9-1-1, $8,406,928. Click
for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Werk
Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Mixto, 126, h, 5, Good Magic–Musical Mystery, by Concerto.
($140,000 2yo '22 OBSAPR). O-Calumet Farm; B-Farfellow
Farms Ltd. (KY); T-Doug F. O'Neill. $2,400,000.
3–Forever Young (Jpn), 126, c, 4, Real Steel (Jpn)–Forever
Darling, by Congrats. (¥98,000,000 Ylg '22 JRHAYF). O-Susumu
Fujita; B-Northern Racing (JPN); T-Yoshito Yahagi. $1,200,000.
Margins: HF, 1 1/4, 2 1/4.
Also Ran: Walk Of Stars (GB), Il Miracolo, Ushba Tesoro (Jpn), Wilson Tesoro (Jpn), Rattle N Roll, Ramjet (Jpn), Katonah, Imperial Emperor (Ire). Click for the ERA chart & video.
🇺🇸🏆 America 1-2 in the Dubai World Cup as #2 HIT SHOW scores at 41-1 under @flothejock for @bradcoxracing! Mixto second and Forever Young third in the $12 million race. Wathnan Racing owns the gray son of @LanesEndFarms Candy Ride. @caseclay1 pic.twitter.com/U7mY0kx40o
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) April 5, 2025
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