Straight No Chaser not done in Middle East; Dubai Golden Shaheen up next

ARCADIA, Calif. – Fresh off a dominating win in Saturday’s Grade 2 Riyadh Dirt Sprint in Saudi Arabia, Straight No Chaser will be sent to Dubai this week in preparation for the Group 1 Golden Shaheen Sprint at Meydan Racecourse on April 5.

A trip to Meydan for the $2 million Golden Shaheen may suit Straight No Chaser more than the track in Saudi Arabia for the $2 million Riyadh Dirt Sprint, trainer Dan Blacker said in a phone interview on Sunday.

Blacker described the dirt surface in Saudi Arabia as a “deep track,” and expects a quicker surface at Meydan.

Straight No Chaser, who won the Eclipse Award as the outstanding American sprinter of 2024, won the Riyadh Dirt Sprint at six furlongs by 3 3/4 lengths for his third consecutive stakes win. The victory was his first start since the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Del Mar last November.

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“Coming off a long layoff, on a deep track, I was pleased with the result,” Blacker said. “The surface at Meydan will be more suitable, especially training on it for six weeks.

“He came out it really well. I’m happy with the way he looked.”

Owned by the My Racehorse syndicate, Straight No Chaser was the odds-on favorite in the Riyadh Dirt Sprint. Ridden by John Velazquez, Straight No Chaser stalked the early pace before taking the lead with a quarter-mile remaining.

The style of the victory was reminiscent of his win in the BC Sprint. In the Grade 2 Santa Anita Sprint Championship at six furlongs last September, the first win of the current streak, Straight No Chaser led throughout.

With the win on Saturday, Straight No Chaser earned a fees-paid berth to the BC Sprint at Del Mar in November. By the time he leaves the Middle East in April, Straight No Chaser may have enhanced his already lofty reputation among the world’s sprinters.

He certainly has enhanced his payroll. The BC Sprint paid $1.04 million to the winner, while the victory on Saturday was worth $1.2 million. Straight No Chaser, a 6-year-old, has won 7 of 11 starts and earned $2,616,300.

Blacker plans to return to his base in California this week. His next stakes runner is El Potente, in Saturday’s Grade 1 Frank Kilroe Mile on turf at Santa Anita. El Potente won the Grade 3 Thunder Road Stakes at one mile on turf on Feb. 1.

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