A likely field of 14 has been announced for the $20 million Saudi Cup (G1) on Feb. 24 at King Abdulaziz Racecourse in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – the world’s richest horse race. usracing.com will post profiles for all the starters, with post positions, odds, and updates provided when available.
WHITE ABARRIO
White Abarrio’s back-to-back Grade 1 victories in the Whitney and Breeders’ Cup Classic earned him some support for Horse of the Year. In another season, he might have won the ultimate award, but the feel-good saga of superstar Cody’s Wish, undeniably the story of the year, was impossible to overcome.
A White Abarrio win in the Saudi Cup could be the story of the year so far.
They split their two meetings, with White Abarrio running third to Cody’s Wish in the Met Mile before dominating him by 10 lengths in the Whitney.
Being outvoted twice by Cody’s Wish, also named the champion Older Dirt Male, did nothing to diminish the dual comeback by White Abarrio and his trainer, the brilliant but controversial Rick Dutrow, Jr.
White Abarrio’s form reversal coincided with the switch from Saffie Joseph, Jr.’s barn early last year. He had lost six consecutive stakes races since taking the Florida Derby in April 2022.
Dutrow emerged from a 10-year suspension at the top of his game, and training White Abarrio up to the Classic off a three-month layoff was a masterful move. He’s brought him to Saudi Arabia off an even longer break (three months, three weeks), but expect him to bring his ‘A’ game.
“Him turning five years old, this is supposed to be his best year as a physical horse,” Dutrow told hrn.com recently. “To us, it looks like that and feels like that.
“We’re going all-in with this race.”
2024 Saudi Cup Contender Odds and Post Position: White Abarrio
Betting advice: It would be no surprise if White Abarrio runs another big one, but the Saudi Cup shapes up as a tougher test than the Classic. Might be overbet, so let the odds be your guide. Verdict: Win contender.
Post position: 1
Odds: 3-1
Jockey: Irad Ortiz. Jr.
Trainer: Rick Dutrow, Jr.
Owner: C2 Racing Stable, La Milagrosa, Prince Faisal Bin Khaled Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud
Age: 5
Career record: 15-7-1-3
Career earnings: $4,946,350
Last race: Breeders’ Cup Classic, Nov. 4 (1st)
Top Equibase speed figure: 122
Pedigree: Race Day-Catching Diamonds by Into Mischief
Color: Gray/roan
Running style: Stalker
Notes: White Abarrio will run in the colors of Prince Faisal in the Saudi Cup, which he won with Mishriff in 2021 … Irad Ortiz Jr., a five-time Eclipse Award winner, is 2-for-2 on the horse … Dutrow won the 2008 Kentucky Derby and Preakness with Big Brown, whose last-place finish in the Belmont Stakes stunned the racing world.
| PP | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Owner | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | White Abarrio | Irad Ortiz, Jr | Rick Dutrow, Jr. | C2 Racing Stable LLC and La Milagrosa Stable, LLC | 3-1 |
| 2 | Isolate | Joel Rosario | Doug Watson | RRR Racing | 15-1 |
| 3 | Lemon Pop | Ryusei Sakai | Hiroyasu Tanaka | Godolphin | 15-1 |
| 4 | Senor Buscador | Junior Alvarado | Todd Fincher | Joe R. Peacock, Jr | 10-1 |
| 5 | Saudi Crown | Florent Geroux | Brad Cox | SFMQ Stables | 8-1 |
| 6 | Crown Pride | Joao Moreira | Koichi Shintani | Teruya Yoshida | 20-1 |
| 7 | National Treasure | Flavien Prat | Bob Baffert | F Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Masterson, Robert E., Stonestreet Stables LLC, Schoenfarber, Jay A., Waves Edge Capital LLC and Donovan, Catherine | 9-2 |
| 8 | Hoist the Gold | John Velazquez | Dallas Stewart | Dream Team One Racing Stable | 30-1 |
| 9 | Defunded | Luis Saez | Abdulaziz K Mishref | Pegram, Michael E., Watson, Karl and Weitman, Paul | 25-1 |
| 10 | Power in Numbers | Adel Alfouraidi | Ahmed Mohamoud | Klaravich Stables, Inc. | 30-1 |
| 11 | Ushba Tesoro | Yuga Kawada | Noboru Takagi | Ryotokuji Kenji Holdings Co. Ltd. | 10-1 |
| 12 | Meisho Hario | Suguru Hamanaka | Inao Okada | Yoshio Matsumoto | 20-1 |
| 13 | Derma Sotogake | Christophe Lemaire | Hidetaka Otonashi | Hiroyuki Asanuma | 6-1 |
| 14 | Carmel Road | Camillo Ospina | Abdullah Albadah | SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Masterson, Robert E., Stonestreet Stables LLC, Schoenfarber, Jay A., Waves Edge Capital LLC and Donovan, Catherinetd> | 25-1 |
The writing team at US Racing is comprised of both full-time and part-time contributors with expertise in various aspects of the Sport of Kings.
