Thunder Snow arrives for Jockey Club Gold Cup

ELMONT, N.Y. – Thunder Snow, the Dubai World Cup winner, arrived at Belmont Park at around 3 a.m. Friday to prepare for a two-race fall campaign in the U.S. that will include next Saturday’s Grade 1, $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup and the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Thunder Snow arrived following a flight that began in Cambridge, England, and included a four-hour layover in Liege, Belgium, according to Tom Burns, the head traveling lad for trainer Saeed bin Suroor.

“He’s a really good traveler; he takes it all in stride,” Burns said.

It is hoped that Thunder Snow will get out of quarantine in time to make it to the track Sunday morning.

Burns said that before Thunder Snow shipped here, he had a strong workout over the all-weather surface at Kempton Racecourse last Wednesday. No time was available.

“He galloped out really well, which he wasn’t doing before,” Burns said. “We galloped him at Newmarket on the turf, he didn’t gallop so good, and that was before his grass race this year.”

In his only start since the Dubai World Cup on March 31, Thunder Snow finished last of eight in the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes on turf at York on Aug. 22.

“He definitely needed the last race,” Burns said. “He’s very lazy at home and only does what he wants to do, so we have to give him a race just to sharpen him up and get him totally race fit.”

Burns said Thunder Snow would have an easy first couple of days at Belmont and then have a blowout over the main track Wednesday or Thursday. It is expected that Saeed bin Suroor will be here by then.

Burns said Christophe Soumillon, Thunder Snow’s regular rider, will be here to ride in the Gold Cup. Burns said Thunder Snow will ship to Churchill Downs on Oct. 1 to prepare for the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 3 at Churchill.

Thunder Snow’s last appearance at Churchill was for the 2017 Kentucky Derby, where he was rank and pulled up by Soumillon about a furlong into the race, won by Always Dreaming.

“I wasn’t here then, but it was [surprising] to everyone,” Burns said. “But he is a character. He doesn’t like to do much work or anything. He likes to do what he wants to do. He has his own mind.”