The Al Maktoum Mile, is a horse race run over a distance of 1,600 metres (1 mile) in late December on dirt at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai. Previously known as the Al Maktoum Challenge, Round 1 it was the first of three races in the Al Maktoum Challenge series which serve as trial races for the Dubai World Cup.
| Group 2 race | |
| Location | Meydan Racecourse Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
|---|---|
| Inaugurated | 1994 |
| Race type | Thoroughbred - Flat racing |
| Race information | |
| Distance | 1,600 metres |
| Surface | Dirt |
| Track | Left-handed |
| Purse | $250,000 (2015) |
It was first run in 1994 on dirt at Nad Al Sheba Racecourse. It was transferred to Meydan in 2010 where it was run on the synthetic Tapeta Footings surface. In 2015 the synthetic surface at Meydan was replaced by a dirt track.[1]
The race began as an ungraded stakes race before attaining Listed status in 1996. The race was elevated to Group 3 level in 2002 and became a Group 2 event in 2013.
The distance of the race changed from 1600 metres (8 furlongs). For the 2023–24 racing season the event was renamed to the Al Maktoum Mile and moved to be held in late December.[2]
Records
editRecord time:
- 1:35.48 - Spindrift (1999)
Most wins by a horse:
- 2 - Le Bernardin (2016, 2017)
Most wins by a jockey:
- 4 - Frankie Dettori (1996, 1997, 2009, 2011)
Most wins by a trainer:
- 8 - Saeed bin Suroor (1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2009, 2011, 2014)
Most wins by an owner:
- 6 - Godolphin Racing (1995, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2009, 2014)
Winners
edit| Year |
Winner |
Age |
Jockey |
Trainer |
Owner |
Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Red Rainbow | 6 | Johnny Murtagh | Dhruba Selvaratnam | Jaffar Ali | 1:39.20 |
| 1995 | Halling | 4 | John Carroll | Saeed bin Suroor | Godolphin | 1:38.40 |
| 1996 | Tamayaz | 4 | Frankie Dettori | Saeed bin Suroor | Godolphin | 1:37.18 |
| 1997 | Kammtarra | 4 | Frankie Dettori | Saeed bin Suroor | Godolphin | 1:35.62 |
| 1998 | Wathik | 8 | Paul Eddery | Paddy Rudkin | Saeed Al Ghandi | 1:37.63 |
| 1999 | Spindrift | 4 | Gary Hind | Saeed bin Suroor | Rashid bin Mohammed | 1:35.48 |
| 2000 | Siege | 4 | Sylvain Guillot | Saeed bin Suroor | Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum | 1:35.70 |
| 2001 | China Visit | 4 | John Carroll | Saeed bin Suroor | Godolphin | 1:36.12 |
| 2002 | Skoozi | 6 | Wayne Smith | Allan Smith | Rashid bin Ahmed Al Mualla | 1:35.99 |
| 2003 | Estimraar | 6 | Wayne Smith | Mazin Al Kurdi | Rashid bin Mohammed | 1:36.81 |
| 2004 | State Shinto | 8 | Ryan Moore | Mazin Al Kurdi | Rashid bin Mohammed | 1:37.37 |
| 2005 | Grand Emporium | 4 | Weichong Marwing | Mike de Kock | A Geemooi | 1:39.92 |
| 2006 | Blatant | 7 | Richard Hills | Ismail Mohammed | Princess Haya of Jordan | 1:36.71 |
| 2007 | Imperialista | 3 | M Cardoso | Cosme Morgado | Estrela Energia Stables | 1:35.96 |
| 2008 | Happy Boy | 4 | Jose Aparecido da Silva | P Nickel Filho | Roberto A L Reichert | 1:36:37 |
| 2009 | My Indy | 4 | Frankie Dettori | Saeed bin Suroor | Godolphin | 1:36.52 |
| 2010 | Gloria de Campeao | 6 | Tiago Josue Pereira | Pascal Bary | Estrela Energia Stables | 1:38.48 |
| 2011 | Mendip | 4 | Frankie Dettori | Saeed bin Suroor | Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum | 1:36.45 |
| 2012 | Musir | 5 | Christophe Soumillon | Mike de Kock | Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Maktoum | 1:35.85 |
| 2013 | Barbecue Eddie | 9 | Dane O'Neill | Doug Watsom | Hamdan Al Maktoum | 1:37.24 |
| 2014 | Shuruq | 4 | Silvestre de Sousa | Saeed bin Suroor | Godolphin | 1:35.84 |
| 2015 | Surfer | 6 | Richard Mullen | Satish Seemar | Zabeel Racing International | 1:38.21 |
| 2016 | Le Bernardin | 7 | Tadhg O'Shea | Ali Rashid Al Raihe | Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Maktoum | 1:37.12 |
| 2017 | Le Bernardin | 8 | Tadhg O'Shea | Ali Rashid Al Raihe | Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Maktoum | 1:36.67 |
| 2018 | Heavy Metal | 8 | Mickael Barzalona | Salem bin Ghadayer | Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum | 1:37.80 |
| 2019 | North America | 7 | Richard Mullen | Satish Seemar | Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum | 1:35.88 |
| 2020 | Kimbear | 6 | Pat Dobbs | Doug Watson | Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi | 1:37.56 |
| 2021 | Military Law | 6 | Antonio Fresu | Musabbeh Al Mheiri | Nasir Askar | 1:36.42 |
| 2022 | Golden Goal | 8 | Sam Hitchcott | Doug Watson | Dale Brennan | 1:37.90 |
| 2023 (Jan) | Algiers | 6 | James Doyle | Simon & Ed Grisford | Hamdan Sultan Ali Alsabousi | 1:35.88 |
| 2023 (Dec) | Isolate | 5 | Tyler Gaffalione | Doug Watson | RRR Racing | 1:37.21 |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Peter Scargill (14 May 2014). "Dirt to replace Tapeta at Meydan for next season". Racing Post. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014.
- ^ "2023-2024 Dubai Racing Carnival Brouchure" (PDF). 2023. pp. 12–14. Retrieved 30 January 2024.