HORSERACING – THE 2026 running of the His Royal Highness The Crown Prince’s Cup Festival takes place today and tomorrow at Rashid Equestrian and Horseracing Club (REHC) in Sakhir.
The two-day fixture is packed with high-class, competitive racing and has attracted some of the world’s leading jockeys, with the feature event being the HRH The Crown Prince’s Cup, sponsored by Cebarco, promoted this year to Group Three status and worth $200,000.
The 17 races across the two days have attracted 202 declared runners, of which 21 are internationally trained horses.
The highlights today include the latest round in the Bahrain Turf Series and the Bahrain Oaks, while tomorrow, in addition to the feature race, the HRH The Crown Prince’s Cup, there is the Bahrain Mile and the Bahrain Derby.
Tom Marquand, one of the world’s leading riders and an ambassador for Bahrain Turf Club, is flying in for the two-day festival and will primarily team up with horses trained by Daniel and Claire Kubler in the colours of Al Adiyat Racing.
The Kublers have made an excellent start to their first season training in Bahrain, operating at a strike rate of 29 per cent, and they have big chances in all of the weekend’s major races.
Stable star and local hero, Byline, runs in the Bahrain Mile, sponsored by BBK, while Cracksking faces his toughest task yet as he bids to extend his unbeaten run in the Group Three HRH The Crown Prince’s Cup.
The Kublers link up with Marquand in the Bahrain Oaks, sponsored by Al Muzdaher Stud; the Bahrain Derby, sponsored by Bapco Energies; and the two Bahrain Turf Series races.
In the middle-distance race, the ultra-competitive Anchorman Cup, sponsored by Howden, runs over 2,000m. Marquand rides top-weight Westridge for the Kublers and then in the sprint division, the 18-runner Hawar Cup, sponsored by Cebarco, he rides Up The Pace.
Reflecting on the start he and wife Claire have made to their Bahrain training career, Daniel said: “It’s been a steep learning curve, we know we are still developing and refining the operation but we’re really happy and excited about this weekend.
“His Highness Shaikh Isa has put together a great team of horsemen and women and working with them and some good quality horses is a pleasure. The results have been good and there are plenty of exciting horses to run.”
Promoted this year to a Group Three, the HRH The Crown Prince’s Cup has attracted a field of eight runners, headed by last year’s King’s Cup winner, Sovereign Spirit, who will be ridden for the first time by Paul Mulrennan.
The pride and joy of his trainer Jaber Ramadhan, Sovereign Spirit showed his well-being when winning on his reappearance last month.
Two internationally trained horses take up the challenge of following in the hoof-prints of previous HRH The Crown Prince’s Cup winners, Isle Of Jura and Phantom Flight. They are Hi Royal, trained by Kevin Ryan, and Nesthorn, trained by George Baker. Both horses have already shown their liking for the course and distance of the HRH The Crown Prince’s Cup when winning Bahrain Turf Series races.
Neil Callan once again links up with Hi Royal, who – although twice placed in Classics – is bidding for a first Stakes win, while Callum Shepherd takes over from Benoit De La Sayette on Nesthorn due to the latter’s commitment to riding Champagne Prince for trainer Haider Ebrahim.
Tomorrow’s Bahrain Mile precedes the HRH The Crown Prince’s Cup and makes for an intriguing appetiser as it features a clash between Byline, the winner of 18 races and at nine years of age seemingly as good as ever, and No Retreat, representing the team of Victorious Forever, George Scott, and Callum Shepherd.
The two horses clashed in December when Byline won by a length, but that was No Retreat’s first race for six months and he seemed to improve for the run when comfortably landing a domestic Grade Two earlier this month. The handicapper now rates the four years younger No Retreat just one pound behind Byline.
The two Bahrain Turf Series races today have attracted the majority of the international runners.
In the Anchorman Cup, Scott and Shepherd combine again with Wave Rider, bought out of Harry Charlton’s yard in October for 420,000 guineas, while England, Ireland, and Scotland are represented by Max Mayhem, trained by George Baker; Slieve Binnian, trained by David Marnane; and Dain Ma Nut In, trained by Lucinda Russell and Michael Scudamore.
Meanwhile, fresh from riding 222 winners in 2025 and breaking a 21st century record for most UK winners in a calendar year, Billy Loughnane adds to the calibre of rider in action at the HRH The Crown Prince’s Cup Festival. He rides Vestigia for local trainer Ramadhan in the Anchorman Cup before teaming up with George Boughey on Spangled Mac in the Hawar Cup.
The Hawar Cup, the sprint division of today’s Bahrain Turf Series races, promises to be one of the most keenly fought of the weekend. The 18-runner line-up for the 1,200m race includes Another Baar, a winner last time out over 1,000m from the in-form Adrian Keatley yard, who have had seven winners from their last eight runners, and Commanche Falls, seeking to build on a very promising Bahrain debut when second two weeks ago.
Hugo Palmer saddles two in the race, Bahrain and Chester specialist, Roman Dragon and Dubai Bling, who is thriving in the kingdom following two excellent placed efforts in rounds one and two of the Bahrain Turf Series.
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