Bhupat Seemar goes into Friday night’s G1 Al Maktoum Challenge at Meydan holding most of the aces, and it would be no surprise if the race again ends with his stable dominating the finish.

Seemar is responsible for six of the nine runners in the 1900m dirt feature, including last year’s first and second, and the stable’s clear standard-bearer remains Walk Of Stars. The seven-year-old Dubawi gelding, already proven at the highest level in Dubai, has drawn barrier three and profiles as a horse peaking at exactly the right time.

Walk Of Stars arrives with the benefit of a recent run, having finished third behind Heart Of Honor over the same course and distance on 19 December. That performance, rather than raising concerns, appears to have sharpened him for this assignment.

“First of all, it’s a privilege to be given so many good horses. It’s tough to line them up because there are some nice horses there, but Walk Of Stars is obviously the highest-rated,” Seemar said. “Then you have got Imperial Emperor, who was second last year, just below him.”

The decision to give Walk Of Stars a prep run was deliberate, despite an original plan to come in fresh.

“Walk Of Stars’ original target was to come here without a prep run but then the connections had a meeting with me and they said, ‘we probably should get a run into him before we go to the Group 1’,” Seemar said.

“So, we gave him a run. He had a Group 1 penalty, he was also getting penalised for weight-for-age and he was only about 75 per cent fit, so I think the last furlong (200m) just told on him a little bit and he ran third to Heart Of Honor. It’s level weights here so it’s going to be an interesting race.”

That context matters. Walk Of Stars, fourth behind Hit Show in last year’s G1 Dubai World Cup, now meets Heart Of Honor at level weights and with fitness on his side, suggesting the margin between them could narrow significantly.

Imperial Emperor adds further depth to the Seemar challenge. He chased Walk Of Stars home in this race last year and looks a more mature and complete horse now, especially after his authoritative win in the G2 Al Maktoum Mile in December. The son of Dubawi has progressed exactly as hoped and is no longer a supporting act.

Kabirkhan is the sentimental runner in the line-up and something of a wildcard. The California Chrome gelding built a remarkable résumé in Kazakhstan and Russia before joining Doug Watson, winning the 2024 Al Maktoum Challenge in his second Dubai start. Now with Seemar, he is being rebuilt.

“He’s only had one start for me but his training has been very good. He still retains a lot of ability. We tried the blinkers and it looks to have worked, I think he was more focused, so that’s what our plan is this time,” Seemar said.

Artorius, Remorse and Killer Collect complete a formidable Seemar sextet. Artorius, by Dubai World Cup hero Arrogate, brings solid American form and the profile of a horse who could still be improving at seven.

“Artorius had some good form in America and he’s by Arrogate, who previously won the Dubai World Cup, and these Arrogates improve with age,” Seemar said.

Standing in their way is Heart Of Honor, trained by Jamie Osborne and ridden by his daughter Saffie. The progressive four-year-old has been flawless this season, winning both starts, including a decisive Listed The Entisar over this track and trip when beating Walk Of Stars by nearly four lengths.

Tumbarumba and Masmak complete the field, but the narrative of this year’s Al Maktoum Challenge revolves around whether Walk Of Stars can reassert his authority over a rival who appears to be catching up fast.

The G1 Al Maktoum Challenge is race S1-3 on the Meydan card and will be run at 12:25am Hong Kong time on Saturday, 24 January.

Image DRC