Saeed bin Suroor

Top Associated Horses: Gladiatorus, Regal Ransom, Vale of York, Music Note, Two Step Salsa, Seventh Street

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2009 Record: (81-21-13-14)

2009 Earnings: $8,064,396

2009 Win %: 25% In-The-Money %: 59%

Born: in 1966 in Dubai
Family: married with three children
Racing Background: Formerly a policeman, he took out his United Arab Emirates training license at the beginning of the 1994 racing season when he started up his own Desert Stables … In 1995, bin Suroor took over as the primary trainer at Sheikh Mohammed’s Al Quoz Stable in Dubai and the Godolphin operation in England
Racing Career: Red Bishop was the first of a number of overseas successes for bin Suroor when he won the G1 San Juan Capistrano Invitational Handicap at Santa Anita in 1995. His other global triumphs that year included wins with Heart Lake, Flagbird, Halling, Moonshell, Classic Cliché and Vettori. He trained Lammtarra to victory in the Vodafone Derby, King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes and the Arc de Triomphe … In 1996, bin Suroor won his first British Trainers’ Championship … In the late 90’s, bin Suroor triumphed with Swain, Allied Forces, Predappio, Annus Mirabilis, Cape Verdi, Kayf Tara, Nedawi, Aljabr, Almutawakel and Daylami … bin Suroor was once again champion trainer in Britain in 1998 and 1999 … In 2000, Dubai Millennium lifted the Dubai World Cup in spectacular style and Bachir pulled off the double in the French and Irish 2,000 Guineas. The year finished on a bright note when Fantastic Light landed the Hong Kong Cup … In 2001, Fantastic Light was the standard bearer with three Group 1 wins, including the Prince of Wales’s Stakes, and the Breeders’ Cup Turf. … Won back-to-back Dubai World Cups in 2002 and 2003 with Street Cry and Moon Ballad, respectively … After a brilliant start in 2006, Electrocutionist won the Dubai World Cup and Discreet Cat took the UAE Derby in Dubai … Discreet Cat returned to the races after a lengthy layoff to run third in the G1 Vosburgh and was bin Suroor's lone Breeders' Cup starter in 2007, finishing third in the Dirt Mile ... In 2008 his only British Group 1 success came with Creachadoir in the Lockinge Stakes, but that horse soon succumbed to a serious leg injury. His other flag-bearer was Folk Opera, who notched a Group 2 triumph in France prior to her wire-to-wire win in the G1 E P Taylor Stakes at Woodbine. Indeed, bin Suroor has enjoyed better times on the American side of the Atlantic with horses stabled in New York with cheif assistant Rick Mettee: Music Note and Cocoa Beach ran second and third, respectively, in the 2008 Breeders’ Cup Ladies' Classic. Godolphin-owned Diabolical finished second in the 2008 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. Music Note won the Mother Goose, Coaching Club American Oaks, and Gazelle Stakes. ... After Midshipman, part of the Darley purchase of Stonerside Stable, won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile for Darley, he was transferred from Bob Baffert to bin Suroor and was derailed in Dubai in 2009 on his run for the Triple Crown with a soft tissue injury. He has rounded back to form with an allowance race victory at Belmont Park. Vineyard Haven is another runner who wintered in Dubai before returning to the United States in 2009 to finish second, after being disqualified from first, in the G1 NetJets King’s Bishop Handicap. Regal Ransom finished second in the G3 U.A.E. Two Thousand Guineas before winning the G2 U.A.E. Derby. He then went on to finish eighth in the Kentucky Derby, received a break, then returned to the track to win the G2 Super Derby. ... Seventh Street started the year under Darley with Kiaran McLaughlin as her trainer, but was transferred to Godolphin and bin Suroor in the summer, before she won the G1 Go For Wand. She also finished second in the G1 Ogden Phipps and Ruffian Handicaps. Other major stakes winners came for bin Suroor in '09 when Music Note won the Ballerina and Beldame stakes, Flashing took the Test, Gayego finished second in the Godolphin Mile before returning to the United States to win the Ancient Title, and Pyro won the Forego Stakes, giving Godolphin its 150th G1 victory. ... Internationally, Mastery gave Godolphin their first British classic since 2004 in the Ladbrokes St Leger, and bin Suroor also trained the runner-up, Kite Wood. Gladiatorous was transferred to bin Suroor after his win in the Dubai Duty Free and won the Premio Vittorio de Capua in Italy. ... Schiaparelli‘s triumph in the Group Two Darley Prix Kergorlay at Deauville saw Godolphin reach a notable landmark of 500 Group/Grade and Listed race wins since the stable’s inception. ... Through Oct. 26, 2009, bin Suroor ranks fifth on the British trainer leaderboard with 116 wins from 463 starts for earnings of $4,151,951. ... In the U.S., he ranks 37th with 16 wins from 62 starts for $2,778,896 in earnings ... For more information, please see the bio for assistant trainer Rick Mettee.

Breeders' Cup Record

Starts	1st	2nd	3rd	Earnings
27	2	1	3	$4,313,800

1995	Classic	Halling	dnf
1996	Classic	Tamayaz	6th
	Mile	Charnwood Forest (Ire)	9th
	Mile	Mark of Esteem (Ire)	7th
	Turf	Wall Street	8th
1998	Classic	Swain (Ire)	3rd
	Mile	Cape Cross (Ire)	9th
	Mile	Fly To The Stars (GB)	5th
1999	Classic	Almutawakel (GB)	5th
	Mile	Lend A Hand (GB)	4th
	Turf	Daylami (Ire)	1st
2000	Mile	Muhtathir (GB)	5th
	Turf	Fantastic Light	5th
2001	Classic	Sakhee	2nd
	Mile	Express Tour	10th
	Mile	Noverre	7th
	Turf	Fantastic Light	1st
2002	Classic	E Dubai	11th
	Distaff	Imperial Gesture	3rd
	Filly & Mare Turf	Kazzia (Ger)	6th
2003	Filly & Mare Turf	Mezzo Soprano	10th
	Turf	Sulamani	5th
2005	Distaff	Stellar Jayne	4th
	Filly & Mare Turf	Sundrop (Jpn)	14th
2006	Mile	Echo of Light (GB)	14th
	Mile	Librettist	10th
2007	Dirt Mile	Discreet Cat	3rd