by Jeff Lowe
A year after Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum and his wife Princess Haya of Jordan combined for three Breeders’ Cup victories, the premier stable in Sheikh Mohammed’s portfolio, Godolphin Racing, is preparing 15 horses for the upcoming World Championships, which would set an event record.
Susan Magnier had 11 starters between several partnerships last year at Santa Anita, the most for one owner at a single Breeders’ Cup.
The previous high for Godolphin was eight starters in the 2001 Breeders’ Cup at Belmont Park when the event encompassed eight races on a single card. That group delivered two wins, with Tempera in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) and Fantastic Light in the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1), and a tough second-place finish by Sakhee to Tiznow in the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1).
This year, Godolphin has multiple candidates for six of the 14 races in the two-day program on November 6-7 at Santa Anita Park, including Grade 2 winners Girolamo and Regal Ransom for the $5-million Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1).
Regal Ransom breezed five furlongs in :58.40 on Monday in his first workout since being shipped from Belmont Park to Santa Anita.
Richard Migliore, the jockey for Regal Ransom’s victory in the Super Derby (G2) on September 19, was aboard for Monday’s drill. Regal Ransom finished eighth in the Norfolk Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita last October in his only previous start on a synthetic surface. He won the $2-million United Arab Emirates Derby Sponsored by Saeed & Mohammed Al Naboodah Group (UAE-G2) in March on the dirt surface at Nad al Sheba racecourse.
“He’s a pretty good work horse in general, so you kind of expect him to work well,” said Rick Mettee, the U.S.-based assistant to Godolphin trainer Saeed bin Suroor. “He went off a little quicker than we would have liked. He’ll do that from time to time. In one regard, it’s good to see him working well over that track. Richard Migliore has a feel for him at Belmont, Saratoga, and now Oak Tree [at Santa Anita], and he thought he handled that synthetic just fine.”
Mettee said Regal Ransom and Girolamo were pre-entered in both the Classic and Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1). Godolphin also has Forego Stakes (G1) winner Pyro and 2008 champion two-year-old male Midshipman for the Dirt Mile.
Jerome Handicap (G2) winner Girolamo covered five furlongs in 1:00.80 on Sunday in his first workout at Santa Anita.
Godolphin also plans to start Cocoa Beach (Chi) and Music Note in the Breeders’ Cup Ladies' Classic (G1); Sara Louise and Seventh Street in the Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (G1); Delegator, Gladiatorus, and Justenuffhumor in the TVG Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1); Gayego in the Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1); Mastery in the Breeders’ Cup Marathon; and Buzzword and Vale of York in either the Grey Goose Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) or Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G2).
Last year, Godolphin finished second with Music Note and third with Cocoa Beach in the Ladies’ Classic, and Midshipman won the Juvenile in the colors of Sheikh Mohammed’s Darley Stable. Darley and Princess Haya were listed as the co-owners of Classic winner Raven’s Pass and Juvenile Turf winner Donativum (GB).
Godolphin racing manager Simon Crisford said Delegator, Gladiatorus, Mastery, Buzzword, and Vale of York would ship from England to California on Sunday. The American-based horses are already at Santa Anita, except for Justenuffhumor, who is with trainer Kiaran McLaughlin in New York.
Crisford told England’s Telegraph that if he had to pick one winner, he would choose Gayego, who collected his first Grade 1 score in the Ancient Title Stakes (G1) on October 11 at Oak Tree.
Gayego breezed four furlongs in :51.20 on Sunday. Mettee said his major tune-up would be a five-furlong workout this weekend.
Vineyard Haven picked up Godolphin’s seventh Grade 1 victory in America this year in the Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash Stakes (G1) on Saturday at Laurel Park. He will bypass the Breeders' Cup and run next in the Hill ‘n’ Dale Cigar Mile (G1) on November 28.
Jeff Lowe is a Thoroughbred Times staff writer