DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Injured Sun Classique can't repeat her mild 2008 upset, but her trainer, Mike de Kock, still has better than a one-in-four chance of capturing his second straight $5 million Dubai Sheema Classic. There are 15 horses in the 1 1/2-mile grass race, and de Kock trains four of them.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Gambling is illegal in Dubai. Racegoers at Nad Al Sheba can fill out pick-seven cards, but that is more a lottery than anything, a stab at hitting all seven winners on one card. Try to look back at odds on past Dubai World Cup performers, and you'll find no such official figures exist. But it is mighty hard to fully detach gambling from horse racing. The whole claiming game is predicated on a half-blind gamble. Go a step further, and realize that any equine purchase basically is a bet that the horse is worth the money.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Wednesday morning marked the annual Godolphin open house at the operation's training headquarters in Al Quoz. Parading in a line before the small training center grandstand is not a part of regular daily activity for the horses stabled here, and they definitely were not loving it. There was a lot of sweating, quite a bit of balking, and a general equine disinterest in showing off. But one horse among the final, highest-class group to be presented stood out - Desert Party.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - None of the top contenders even had to stifle a cringe at the Dubai World Cup post position draw Wednesday night. Trainer Mike De Kock sought post 5 for Asiatic Boy and got 6. Can't complain about that. Well Armed is well enough armed in post position 7. And trainer Kiaran McLaughlin wanted to be somewhere not too far outside, but outside of Well Armed; he got his wish, when Albertus Maximus was assigned post position 10.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - They came whizzing past the Nad Al Sheba grandstand about 6:30 Tuesday morning like this was a Los Angeles freeway. No sooner had trainer Mike de Kock turned his binoculars away from one pair of work horses than the glasses were trained on another pair breaking off down the backstretch. In all, eight de Kock horses breezed in quick succession, and barring misfortune, all will run on the Dubai World Cup program here Saturday night.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Meydan, the colossal racing and entertainment facility under construction just yards away from Nad Al Sheba Racetrack, will be completed not just in time for the 2010 Dubai World Cup, but in time for the usual November opening of the Dubai racing season, the Emirates Racing Club's CEO, Frank Gabriel, said Tuesday.

Youth was served at the Curragh on Sunday as 3-year-old fillies Oh Goodness Me and Firey Red finished one-two in the Group 3, $123,000 Park Express Stakes, narrowly defeating the 4-year-old Mad About You, the 3-10 favorite.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - "Widespread dust."

That was the weather forecast for the emirate of Dubai on Monday, and during morning training hours at Nad Al Sheba, the wind whipped up that dust so thickly that one could barely make out the other side of the racetrack. It was mirage-like, all right, and seeing horse forms gallop out of the dust it almost was possible to imagine one into the mighty Curlin. This time last year, Curlin had been in Dubai for five weeks, and all the anticipation built up during his stay came bursting forth in a memorable victory.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - It has been eight years since trainer Bob Baffert won his second World Cup with Captain Steve, and 11 years since Baffert won the 1998 edition of the race with Silver Charm. Five years have passed since Baffert has sent a horse to Dubai, and even devoted racing fans will be hard pressed to pluck the name of his most recent starter from memory: During, who checked in sixth in the 2004 Godolphin Mile.

Mad About You embarks on what her trainer, Dermot Weld, hopes will be a lucrative 4-year-old campaign at the Curragh on Sunday when she takes on seven rivals in the Group 3, $123,000 Park Express Stakes on the first day of the Irish flat racing season.