Romantic Warrior in Dubai debut

Hong Kong champion and nine-time Group 1 winner Romantic Warrior starts his Middle East campaign in the Jebel Hatta at Meydan today, setting up a mouth-watering clash with Charlie Appleby's Measured Time in the Group 1 event on a star-studded nine-race card.

- Ed Marnane

Globe-trotting Romantic Warrior, trained by Danny Shum, is proven on the world stage, winning the Cox Plate, in Australia, in 2023, before defeating the cream of the Japanese milers in the Yasuda Kinen last year. He arrived in Dubai last month, nine days after winning the Hong Kong Cup for a third successive year.

Romantic Warrior, the world's highest-earning racehorse, worked nicely under regular pilot, James McDonald, at Meydan on Tuesday morning. He will take plenty of beating chasing a 10th victory at the highest level, despite his trainer warning he's not fully fit and will improve for the race ahead of a tilt at the Saudi Cup next month.

Measured Time, winner of three of his four starts at Meydan, holds strong claims and is Romantic Warrior's chief threat following his eye-catching victory in the Al Rashidiya.

That display, off a 118-day break, deserves to be upgraded as the son of Frankel broke Just A Way's longstanding track record, a performance that raised eyebrows given the rail on the turf track was out 8m.

All eyes will be on Laurel River, the wide-margin winner of the Dubai World Cup last March, on his seasonal debut in Race 4, the Firebreak Stakes (Group 3). Owned and bred by Juddmonte Farms, he faces nine rivals in the 1600m event and can advertise his claims in the Saudi Cup, the world's richest race, in Riyadh.

Bhupat Seemar's stable star, who was ranked Longines World's Best Racehorse for 2024 alongside City Of Troy, is ideally drawn in stall No 4 for a horse that likes to attack from the front.

Race 6, Round II of the Al Maktoum Challenge, the second Group 1 on the card, sees last year's winner, Kabirkhan, return to defend his title for Doug Watson.