Arabie, the hope of Antonio Cintra and Julio Olascoaga for the Al Quoz Sprint

The British sprinter, a G2 and G3 winner in France, arrived at the South Americans' stable a few weeks ago and will attempt the feat in the turf sprint

Julio Olascoaga and Antonio Cintra (center) will attempt to strike with Arabie / DRC

By Diego H. Mitagstein

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (Special for Turf Diario).— After an International Carnival filled with much good news—and plenty that could have been—the team formed by the Brazilian Antonio Cintra and the Uruguayan Julio Olascoaga will also be part of the Dubai World Cup night.

It is not easy to be present on the day when everyone wants to be a protagonist, and that is why the duo highly values the opportunity presented to them with the British runner Arabie, one of the 13 confirmed to run in the Al Quoz Sprint (G1-1,200 m, turf), with 1,500,000 dollars in prize money and a field of high-ranking rivals.

It will be a challenge for Cintra and Olascoaga, who received the son of Dandy Man into their stable just a few weeks ago from Karl Burke, with whom he competed three times this season, always finishing close.

"He was bought by Sky Racing and stayed here for this race, though thinking more about next year. He was a good sprinter in Europe, and although he found it a bit hard to adapt in Dubai, regardless of what he does on Saturday, we believe we have a very interesting horse for the future," says Julio Olascoaga, hopeful to see him perform in good shape.

Arabie was third on his Meydan debut in a handicap, then finished fourth nearly 4 lengths behind Great Wish (Night of Thunder) in the Dubai Sprint (L), and fifth to Native Approach (Too Darn Hot) in the Nad Al Sheba Turf Sprint(G3), 4 1/2 lengths back.

The bay will cross paths again with those two rivals in the Al Quoz Sprint, and it is worth remembering that, during his European campaign, he won the Prix Robert Papin (G2) and the Prix du Bois (G3) in Chantilly, France, both over the same 1,200 meters he will compete in now.

"The balance is always good. Learning, gaining experience, and with the stable growing in quality and quantity. In terms of results, we achieved good wins, although a few escaped us in important races due to small details. Beyond everything, we have great perspectives for next year. We have 40 horses and the stud is becoming too small; right now we are looking for space. Also, we are always looking closely at South America to see what horses might appear and manage to bring over. We also have a lot of support from several local owners, who have a lot of drive to continue," analyzes Olascoaga, happy with the project's present and with high expectations that the future will be much better.