Meydan round-up: Joy for Japan, Crisfords and Beasley

Simon and Ed Crisford's smart mare Fairy Glen maintained her stellar start to 2026 by landing a dramatic G2 Dubai Gold Cup, sponsored by Al Tayer Motors.

For much of the 3200m it looked as if Silvestre De Sousa might have delivered a masterstroke on Sunway, establishing a lead of around 25 lengths from an initially dawdling pace until a combination of loneliness and tiredness became obvious turning for home.

Caballo De Mar, who had sat second, made the first bid for home but Mickael Barzalona angled Fairy Glen up the inside and she passed the line half a length in front of that rival for her biggest victory to date.

The daughter of Farhh, bred by Godolphin and owned by HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, had been among the Crisford stable's contingent in Dubai this year and arrived off a victory in the G2 Balanchine over just 1800m last time.

Ed Crisford said: "It's fantastic. We ran her in the Balanchine here, which was a bit short for her but since that race she's really blossomed, done really well. She got invited to this race, she's never run over two miles before, we were a little bit sceptical about if she'd stay the extra two furlongs - she's won over a mile and six back in England - but I thought Mickael rode her really well, a sensible race and she finished very well.

"She goes on this sort of ground, she's run at Bath in heavy ground in the UK so she's well used to these conditions. I'm really pleased for His Highness Sheikh Hamdan to have a winner on the night."

Simon Crisford added: "I think we were stretching our luck going up to two miles but the way the race set up, it worked really well for the closers. She’s got a nice turn of foot, and she showed it tonight. She’s very honest, very brave, a good filly.

"She’s a dual Group 2 winner and she’ll probably go back and run next in the Middleton (a Group 2 over 2100m at York). 

Barzalona said: "We tried to relax as quick as we could but actually they went a nice gallop and she was pretty happy. When they pressed the pace mid-bend I thought I had plenty in hand, I didn't know for how long so I waited a bit and when I asked her to pick up she picked up nicely."

Of the runner-up, trainer George Scott said: "He got a great ride and just got beat by a filly who is in great form. He’s a horse that stays so well, he’s a [Ascot] Gold Cup horse, and we’ll probably go to the Sagaro or something like that. Everything will be about the Gold Cup and we’ll work back from that. But he’s run a great race and he’s proven himself at this level.

"He’s a very, very decent staying horse. She [Fairy Glen] came at him quite quick and if he’d managed to get her in a fight, it might have been different."

Japanese colt Wonder Dean will attempt to succeed where his compatriots have not as he eyes off the Kentucky Derby following his victory in the Group 2 UAE Derby, sponsored by Jumeirah.

Daisuke Takayanagi-trained Wonder Dean became the fifth straight Japanese winner of the UAE Derby, following Crown Pride (2022), Derma Sotogake (2023), Forever Young (2024) and Admire Daytona (2025). Each of them also went to Churchill Downs for the G1 Kentucky Derby but could not win; Forever Young went closest, just edged out by Mystik Dan and Sierra Leone.

Takayanagi finished fifth in that same Kentucky Derby with T O Password and can dream of the famous garland of roses with Wonder Dean after he stayed on stoutly under Cristian Demuro to take the UAE Derby.

Like his stablemate Commissioner King in the G2 Godolphin Mile earlier in the card, Bhupat Seemar-trained Six Speed set a ferocious tempo early that both exposed stamina and made it almost impossible for any horse beyond midfield to get into the race.

That was perhaps not an ideal scenario given Six Speed had his own stamina queries, but it served the purpose of putting most of his rivals under pressure - including Wonder Dean. 

From a middle gate, Demuro bustled Wonder Dean early but he was outsped into the first turn and ended up midfield. Throughout, he was niggled by the Italian jockey but it meant that - approaching the 800m - he was able to race into second with momentum as others around him struggled.

As they approached the straight, it appeared a race in two - Six Speed three lengths ahead of Wonder Dean with fellow Japanese contender Pyromancer hard-pressed to hold down third five lengths away. And while Six Speed stuck to his guns resolutely, Wonder Dean was making ground with every stride as the pair pulled clear of the field.

In the end, stamina proved the difference; Wonder Dean was simply more stout than Six Speed. Two and a half lengths separated the pair at the line, with six lengths to Pyromancer in third. 

It means that the last non-Japanese winner of the UAE Derby remains the remarkable globetrotter Rebel's Romance, who has not raced on dirt since his 2021 triumph at Meydan.

Takayanagi said: "This is my first international success so I feel amazing. I was truly impressed by his performance. I was confident beforehand as I thought the extra distance would definitely help, and that Meydan would suit him. "I was expecting the leader Six Speed to stop a lot earlier than he did and so I was a bit worried, but I always thought he would get there."

Takayanagi is already planning the logistics for his second Kentucky Derby sojourn.

"Yes, of course (we will go)," he said. "We will go directly to America from here. 

"Wonder Dean is developing physically and mentally all the time and I am very excited about what he can do in the future."

Demuro hopes he can make his maiden appearance in the Kentucky Derby.

"I had a dream run around," he said. "I was able to ride him how I wanted and although he didn’t have too much cover, he came there so easily and then really picked up well. 

"If I am asked to ride in the Kentucky Derby it would be a first and a wonderful experience."

A Kentucky Derby rematch may be on the cards as Seemar has his own plans to head to Churchill Downs with Six Speed.

"He just didn't stay," he said. "He doesn't help himself. He's got so much speed but he needs to learn to relax. The plan is to go to Kentucky Derby next."

Added Barzalona: "We knew there was a chance he might not stay because he has so much speed, but I let him roll on the way he likes. At the end he was very tired and it was his heart that kept him in it."

Off form for the bulk of the 2025-26 Dubai Racing Carnival, Sultan Ali's Dark Saffron was put right into play from a wide draw in defence of his title in Saturday's Dubai Golden Shaheen, sponsored by Nakheel, and outsprinted reigning G1 Breeders' Cup Sprint champion Bentornato to give jockey Connor Beasley and trainer Ahmad Bin Harmash a rolling Group 1 double. The pair earlier teamed to win the Al Quoz Sprint with Native Approach.

Defeated by a combined 50 lengths after taking his seasonal debut in November, Dark Saffron perked back up with a runner-up effort to El Nasseeb in the G3 Mahab Al Shimaal on Super Saturday and was back to his very best just after sunset on Saturday.

First to break the line from barrier 11, Dark Saffron argued the pace outside of 2024 winner Tuz and inside of Khanjar as Bentornato was forced to take his medicine just in behind Tuz. In front passing the 500-metre marker, Dark Saffron found more for pressure and was always holding the American raider in the run to the line. Cats By Five ran on for third, while Tuz dropped away to finish fourth.

Dark Saffron joins the likes of Caller One and Mind Your Biscuits as back-to-back winners of the Dubai Golden Shaheen, which serves as a 'Win and You're In' qualifier for this year's Breeders' Cup Sprint at Keeneland.

“Obviously he won this race last year and he come back and run really well, it was a bit of a workout first time he ran this season,” Beasley said. “Then he had a bit of an incident in the stalls and banged his head and sort of lost his way. I think he lost a bit of confidence for his next three or four runs, but his last run we felt he was coming back to himself.”

“I think the post position cost us the race,” said Bentornato's trainer Jose D'Angelo. “It's the first time that we've seen him running in behind the speed. We have plenty of races and of course, the ultimate goal is the Breeders' Cup again. We'll give him time as always and be ready for that.”