French Derby and Irish Champion Stakes winner The Grey Gatsby looked in great order this morning as he took a spin around the Tapeta training track in Dubai, away from the main track at Meydan, where Kevin Ryan put the finishing touches on his star.
The Grey Gatsby is a general 3-1 joint-favourite for the Dubai Turf, formerly the Dubai Duty Free, which is one of the highlights of Saturday's Dubai World Cup night.
The Grey Gatsby has not raced since Leopardstown in September when he overturned the hot favourite and dual Derby winner Australia in the Irish Champion, but the lack of run is not a concern for his trainer.
Ryan said: "I'm not worried about him not having had a prep race as he's not difficult to prepare and he's a horse that runs well fresh."
Ryan Moore has won on three of the four occasions he partnered the horse and his feedback has evidently influenced The Grey Gatsby's handler.
Ryan said: "We nominated him for both the mile-and-a-half Sheema Classic and this race, but Ryan felt the shorter trip here (nine furlongs) would suit him better.
"He's a very fast horse and needs an end-to-end gallop, which he should get here.
"It's a very competitive race, but our horse is in good shape. I'm not too worried about the trip, he has lots of speed."
Elaborating on his training regime this week, Ryan said: "He went on the grass yesterday and the Tapeta today, and he was more relaxed this morning. It's only a case of him stretching his legs really.
"He got better and stronger as the season went on last year and, over the winter, he's matured again. It's always a worry when you are travelling, but he seems to have taken it all well.
"It's all there on his CV. He was always competitive and he ran against the best around, with his last win being his best.
"Saturday's race will be very competitive but there's not much point in worrying about the opposition - I only train one horse in the race and I'm very happy that our horse is in really good shape."
