The $20m Saudi Cup, to be run at King Abdulaziz Racetrack in Riyadh on 29 February 2020 is now the world’s richest race.
Details of the contest were announced by Prince Bandar bin Khalid Al Faisal, chairman of the Jockey Club Of Saudi Arabia, at a launch event in Saratoga this week.
Prince Bandar bin Khalid Al Faisa
The race will be run over 1800m on dirt and have a maximum field of 14 starters.
The prize for the winning horse will be US$10,000,000 with finishers down to 10th place sharing another US$10 000 000 between them.
The Saudi Cup will take its place on the international calendar and will be run four weeks after the Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park, and four weeks prior the Dubai World Cup at Meydan. This means that the top horses in training have the opportunity to compete in all three of the most valuable dirt races in the world.
The prizemoney of the Saudi Cup places it in esteemed company.
The Pegasus World Cup had a peak value of US$16 million in 2018 while the Dubai World Cup is currently worth US$12 million.
In terms of turf races, the richest is in Australia (the Everest) and is worth US$9.8 million, in Japan the mark is US$6 million for the Japan Cup and Europe’s most lucrative event (the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe) has a prize fund of US$5.6 million.
The race is open to Northern Hemisphere four-year-olds and upwards and Southern Hemisphere three-year-olds and upwards, and will be run at weight-for-age.
Lasix and Bute will not be allowed in the Saudi Cup.
Entries are due by noon on Tuesday 7 January 2020.
The race is free to enter and free to run and shipment of invited horses will be arranged and paid for by the Jockey Club Of Saudi Arabia, which will also pay for stables, fodder, veterinary fees and farrier, and arrange and pay for flights and accommodation of connections.
