Dubai Honour is making his long-awaited return to Sydney, preparing to contest the Tancred Stakes at Rosehill. According to his handler, Isabella Paul, the gelding has developed into a more complete and experienced racehorse since his last visit.
During the autumn of 2023, Dubai Honour made a statement with emphatic wins in the Ranvet Stakes and Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m). Now, he returns as a seasoned international competitor.
His global campaign has only strengthened his ability to travel and perform at the highest level.
“Dubai Honour has been around the world and back about twenty times, so he’s fairly cruisy,” Paul said.
“He seems to just take everything in his stride. He’s probably a bit less naughty than he was as a younger horse, but he still can be pretty cheeky and it’s great to see how fresh he comes off the flight now.
“When they’re a bit younger they think about it a bit more and they stress about it, where for him it is fairly routine and he came off the flight absolutely bouncing.”
Since his dominant displays in Sydney two years ago, Dubai Honour has added to his resume with a Group 1 victory in France, a runner-up finish at the highest level in Germany, and a strong placing in the Hong Kong Vase last December.
His recent form over 2400m led trainer William Haggas to adjust his strategy for this Sydney campaign, skipping the Ranvet Stakes in favor of the Tancred Stakes (2400m).
Despite now being seven years old, Paul insists Dubai Honour remains as sharp as ever.
“I think so. He’s in really, really good form,” she said.
“That run in Hong Kong was absolutely huge. He was a bit unlucky in the race and you thought he might have won and then you look at how unlucky the eventual winner actually was, Giavellotto, and you can’t be upset.
“He is still proving himself. That was only a couple of months ago, so I think he can still perform at the top level despite being a seven-year-old.”
The Tancred Stakes has drawn an elite field, featuring first-up Sky High Stakes winner Vauban, Caulfield Cup hero Duke De Sessa, and last year’s winner Arapaho.
With Dubai Honour primed for another strong showing, all eyes will be on Rosehill to see if he can recapture his past Sydney glory.
