Calandagan to race in Dubai’s Sheema Classic despite conflict in the Gulf

Calandagan, nan world’s top-rated Flat equine successful 2025, will alert to Dubai from Paris connected Saturday to tally successful nan Sheema Classic astatine Meydan adjacent weekend, contempt nan continuing conflict successful nan Gulf region.

The gelding’s owner, Aga Khan Studs, consulted unit already successful Dubai earlier deciding to springiness nan greenish ray to Francis-Henri Graffard’s five-year-old, nan victor of 4 Group One events past play including nan Japan Cup successful November.

“We’ve been very happy pinch Calandagan,” Nemone Routh, nan owner’s racing manager, said connected Friday. “If we didn’t tally successful Dubai past we’d person been looking astatine races successful nan summer. He’s successful awesome shape and we already person a filly retired location pinch staff. We’ve been keeping successful adjacent interaction pinch them.

“We’ve assessed nan full situation, worked nan equine again this greeting and he’s successful awesome shape truthful we’ve taken nan determination to nonstop him and tally him adjacent weekend.”

Calandagan will lead a reduced European squad connected adjacent weekend’s $30m (£22.5m) World Cup nighttime card, erstwhile Willie Mullins’s Ethical Diamond, nan 2025 Breeders’ Cup Turf winner, and Charlie Appleby’s Rebel’s Romance, who took nan Turf successful 2022 and 2024, are among his imaginable rivals successful nan Sheema Classic.

Dan Skelton has already group a British grounds for prize money won successful a National Hunt play and is poised to go nan first trainer to break nan £4m obstruction connected Saturday, erstwhile he will nonstop 16 runners to meetings astatine Newbury, Kelso and Bangor-on-Dee.

Skelton is astir £65k short of £4m heading into nan play and will make nan lion’s stock successful 1 spell if Diamond Street (3.35) aliases his second-string, The Mad Poet, tin onshore nan day’s astir valuable event, nan Goffs Hundred Grand Bumper astatine Newbury.

Diamond Street produced an abrupt move of ft to surge 10 lengths clear connected his racecourse debut astatine Doncaster. He is apical rated connected that shape and has greater scope for betterment than galore of his rivals pinch conscionable 1 tally to his sanction truthful far.

Kelso 1.00 Trip, crushed and people each look perfect for James Kenny’s lightly raced eight-year-old, World Of Fortunes.

Newbury 1.15: A driblet successful people for Koktail Bleu and a repetition of his Grade Two shape astatine Kempton past clip should beryllium enough.

Kelso 1.30: Judicial Deference and Brookside La are intimately matched connected Haydock shape successful January but marginal penchant is for nan former, who continued his betterment astatine this way past time.

Newbury 1.50: Several promising types make their handicap debuts, and Thewoodcorner’s four-year-old allowance could extremity nan balance.

Kelso 2.10: Nicky Henderson’s Khrisma is an evident favourite but has apical weight for her handicap debut against immoderate lightly raced opponents and Our Peggy, second successful a beardown clip astatine Wincanton earlier this month, makes plentifulness of each-way entreaty getting a chromatic and a half from nan marketplace leader.

Newbury 2.25: A four-from-six grounds complete way and travel suggests Heltenham is nan 1 to hit arsenic he bids to registry a 3rd triumph successful this race.

Kelso 2.40: Diamond Dealer’s jumping has improved by nan title and he could beryllium very difficult to walk if he settles into a hit up front.

Newbury 3.00: After an eye-catching tally successful nan qualifier astatine Market Rasen, nan Skeltons’ Getawhisky will beryllium a celebrated prime to container different valuable prize for her stable.

Bangor 3.20: The return to decent crushed will suit In The Age, a victor connected akin going successful January.