The 4-year-old colt Magnitude had an easy half-mile breeze Monday morning at Fair Grounds. He departed New Orleans for Florida the following day and, as of Friday, remained on schedule to fly from Florida to Dubai on Saturday. David Fiske, the racing manager for Magnitude’s owner, Ron Winchell’s Winchell Thoroughbreds, said Friday morning that Magnitude’s trip for the $12 million Dubai World Cup on March 28 at Meydan Racecourse still is a go despite an ongoing military conflict in the Middle East. Racing on Friday at Meydan went off as scheduled, though a missile warning delayed the second race on the card by about a half-hour. Iran, which lies a little more than 20 miles across the Strait of Hormuz from Dubai, has struck the United Arab Emirates with missiles and drones since Israel and the United States on Feb. 28 launched an attack upon Iran. The Iranian strikes in Dubai, which have not caused widespread damage or casualties, have been concentrated around the international airport and the financial district. Fiske said that exercise rider Carlos Rosas and a groom were en route to Dubai to meet Magnitude upon his arrival. Assistant trainer Scott Blasi, Fiske said, will travel to supervise final preparations. Blasi has shipped several times to Dubai, including with Curlin, who won the 2008 World Cup at the old Nad Al Sheba course, and with Gun Runner, who was second in the 2017 World Cup at Meydan. :: Big Action in the Big Easy at Fair Grounds! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. Magnitude is following a racing pattern oddly similar to Gun Runner’s, winning the Clark Stakes at Churchill in November and prepping for the World Cup by taking the Razorback Handicap at Oaklawn. Magnitude had been intended for the $20 million Saudi Cup on Feb. 14 but ran a fever the day he was scheduled to ship from New Orleans, forcing connections to alter course. Instead, the colt scored a measured 3 3/4-length Razorback victory on Feb. 28. “Steve [Asmussen, who trains Magnitude] was really happy with his breeze, and it looked great on the video that I saw,” Fiske said. Hit Show, the 2025 Dubai World Cup winner, also remained on track to ship overseas Saturday, according to trainer Brad Cox. Hit Show in his World Cup prep won the Mineshaft Stakes last month at Fair Grounds before rejoining Cox’s string at Payson Park in Florida. “We’re still going,” Cox said Friday. “He worked yesterday, went very good.” While some Japan-based connections have decided to forgo traveling to Dubai, the Japanese superstar Forever Young flew to Dubai after winning the Saudi Cup and remains an intended runner in the World Cup. Forever Young, sapped by a ferocious Saudi Cup win, was third in the 2025 World Cup and will be heavily favored to capture this year’s renewal. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.