Nad Al Sheba (Gary Thorpe)

Handicapper’s Edge has a nice rundown of the other Americans (Curlin isn’t the only American horse running!) prepping at Nad Al Sheba for the Dubai World Cup this coming weekend.

Notional is one of many horses representing the states. Which race he’ll run in is actually up in the air. His most recent race was the Daytona Handicap on the turf where he showed the first signs of life since the 2007 Derby Trail. However the Dubai Duty Free on the turf looks to be “super tough” as his second run on the turf + he hasn’t even secured a spot in it. He is booked for the Godolphin mile yet his connections are not exactly keen to run him on dirt as they already have Barcola in the mile.

“It’s tough,” said exercise rider Tony Romero, who is handling affairs for O’Neill. “This is the race that all the best turf horses in the world come and run in. The Godolphin Mile would have been perfect for him, but Mr. Reddam already has an entry in there.”

Notional is said to be training aggressively, which is a good thing if he gets in that turf race! Either way I’ll be routing for him… AND really looking forward to seeing Premium Tap/Allam in the Classic!