Khalid looks to clinch fifth UAE Owners Championship title

Amir Naqvi, Sports Editor

AF Farms will look to win a fifth UAE Owners Championship during the 2021/22 Emirates Racing Season. The UAE’s new horse racing season began on Friday with Jebel Ali Racecourse playing the role of the tradition host. The second race meeting of the calendar will be held at the Sharjah Longines Racecourse on Saturday.

The black and white silks of four-time Champion Owner Khalid Khalifa Al Nabooda will be first seen at Sharjah on Saturday, which has a seven race card dedicated to thoroughbreds.

And Khalid just cannot wait to see how his armada of UAE breds go after they helped him to a sensational fourth owners’ title in six years during the 2020-21 campaign. He also also came close to winning the PA Group 1 Dubai Kahayla Classic.

Khalid would have won the title as owner for the second time, but AF Alwajel fell only just short in his quest to win the 2000m contest with what would have been a brave gate to wire success.

But with fresh optimism, the entire AF enterprise is back and ready to fire, with Khalid declaring: “We are waiting for the season to start.

“This year it was very hot so we delayed training a bit, especially the that of the 3yos. The older ones can deal with the stress of training and the heat, but the weather has gotten much better and I feel all the owners and trainers and breeders and jockeys are waiting for the season to start.

“It is a beautiful competition and people are waiting to get back to the racecourses as last season many stayed away because of COVID-19 restrictions. The restrictions are less this year so it will be easier to move around between cities too and we are really looking forward to it.”

For AF Farms the season begins in Sharjah, with the team well represented in all of the five Purebred Arabian races, including the feature Dr Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan Cup, a prestige event over 1700m. Two go to post here: AF Alajaj driven by UAE Champion Jockey Tadhg O’Shea and AF Kal Noor, the ride of Malin Holmberg.

Khalid praised Sheikh Abdullah Bin Majid Al Qasimi, the Chairman of Sharjah Equestrian and Racing Club (SERC), for his support to Arabian racing.

“I would really like to thank Sheikh Abdullah for his backing of the local bred races there and for hosting more races. The local bred horses have proved they can compete with the rest from around the world and I would like to see more local breeders competing in these races with their horses. Good luck to the rest of the breeders that will be competing during the season,” said Khalid, who has dominated the UAE Owners’ Championship race recently having won four of the last five titles.

Khalid clinched his first title in 2016-17 and has now won thrice on the bounce in 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21.

“I thank God that I won four Owners’ Championships and it shows my team with Ernst Oertel as trainer and Tadhg O’Shea as my main jockey and Karl Oertel as the manager of the farm are doing well.

“Racing is down to teamwork and all of our staff: the vets, the grooms, the feed guy, the farriers, their hard work ensures we are on the right track. We are one team.”

Khalid knows it’s getting tougher to win with the overall competition having improved considerably over the years due to the direction given by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE and Minister of Presidential Affairs, who is also the Chairman of the Emirates Racing Authority (ERA).

“It won’t be easy this season as I know there are a number of stables with local bred horses, but this is what racing is all about,” said Khalid.