The third race of the new season at Jebel Ali Racecourse, named "Union Day", kicks off at 1:45 PM today, coinciding with the country's 54th Union Day celebrations. The race card features seven heats; the first is dedicated to purebred Arabian horses, while the other six are for purebred Arabian crossbreds. The event is sponsored by leading national institutions and corporations, with a total prize purse of AED 598,000, as 82 of the best local and international horses compete for the titles. The first heat, the "1971 Cup" for purebred Arabians over 1200 meters, is sponsored by Porsche with a prize fund of AED 50,000, and will see 13 top thoroughbreds compete. The excitement continues in the sixth main heat, the "Zayed and Rashid Initiative Cup", classified under "Parity", with a total prize fund of AED 120,000, attracting 10 of the finest horses over 1800 meters. Among them stands out "Al Ra'id", bearing the motto of His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and trained by Michael Costa, who holds the highest rating after a strong start to the season; he began his campaign in early November with a well-deserved win on the same track over 1400 meters, before securing second place on the same distance just two weeks ago. Also in the mix with the same classification is "Mount Kosciuszko", owned by "Sky Racing" and trained by Julio Olasoaga, who is seeking his first win of the season and the sixth of his career after testing his abilities on the 7th of this month by finishing fifth in the opening race of the global "Meydan" season.
