Dubai Racing Club (DRC) has released the schedule for the 2023-24 Dubai racing season at Meydan Racecourse.
Racing gets underway at Dubai’s marquee racing venue on 10 November and will run until 30 March in what will be a vastly different season, one that will be rife with excitement throughout after the DRC decided to do away with the previously clearly-defined international half that until last season ran in the form of the Dubai World Cup Carnival.
The 2023/24 programme will comprise a total of 14 meetings, culminating 8 March. These will precede the prestigious and lucrative $30.5million Dubai World Cup card on 30 March.
DRC have gone all out in ringing in the changes, with the Dubai World Cup meeting, traditionally held three weeks after the UAE’s second biggest night Super Saturday, now playing out four weeks later. The 2024 Super Saturday card has been pencilled in for 2 March and will continue to serve as a dress rehearsal for the big night.
DRC has increased prize money by 27 per cent compared to the 2022-23 campaign, which when reflected in terms of purses will see a minimum of AED165,000 being offered per race.
Apart from Super Saturday, the action shifts up a notch on two other nights: Festive Friday (22 December) and Fashion Friday (26 January). On Festive Friday, Meydan stages six Pattern races, including the Group 2 Maktoum Mile, which is now AED1million. Fashion Friday, meanwhile, stages nine Pattern races, including a pair of Group Ones in the form of the Group 1 Maktoum Challenge, a notable prep race for the Dubai World Cup, which now boasts of an elevated purse of AED3.68million, and the AED1.85million Jebel Hatta, the course and distance equivalent of the DWC night’s Group 1 Dubai Turf.
A popular social occasion, Super Saturday will be hosted on 2 March and includes the Group 2 Al Maktoum Classic, upgraded Group 3 Ras Al Khor, and the Listed Jumeirah 1000 Guineas – won in 2023 by subsequent Group 1 Qipco 1000 Guineas heroine Mawj.
Commenting on the programme Major General Dr. Mohammed Essa Al Adhab, the Executive Director of Dubai Racing Club, said: “We are delighted to unveil the full programme for our exciting new-look season here in Dubai. The programme is diverse and caters to a wide range of horses, both Purebred Arabian and Thoroughbred. We hope that our excellent prize money and world class facilities will continue to attract the best in the sport to race here in Dubai.”
The full programme can be accessed *here:
Race Condition & Program Chart (dubairacingclub.com)
Race Condition & Program Chart (dubairacingclub.com)
More details on stabling for international runners will follow in due course.
*Please note that some race conditions are subject to change
