James Doyle has been booked for nine rides at King Abdulaziz Racecourse on Friday and Saturday this week, including aboard the former Sir Michael Stoute-trained five-year-old My Frankel in the meeting’s feature race on Saturday, the Crown Prince Cup (Domestic G1).
Doyle first rode in Saudi Arabia in the 2013/14 season, with his last winner coming in 2019/20, while the Brit will also be joined by four-time French Champion Jockey Olivier Peslier.
Peslier, already a former winner of the Crown Prince Cup, will ride former Mark Johnston galloper Dontaskmeagain in the SAR 1million contest (approx. £215,000), while both jockeys also have rides in the Crown Prince Cup for local-bred horses, also worth SAR 1million.
Doyle said: "I've been coming here for a number of years now, and It's been clear to see how passionate the people of Saudi Arabia are towards horse racing. I felt it was always going to become quite big out here with the support from the right people.
"Both tracks ride great, the turf is pretty new but rides extremely well and the dirt is super. Usually, the best horse wins as the track is very fair and the kickback is minimal.
"My Frankel looks to be my main ride and he has proved to be very versatile out here with good runs on the turf, but the dirt looks to be his game and the team are very happy with him. I have plenty of rides on Friday too, with a number of them having prep runs for bigger targets ahead, so it will be nice to get to know them."
Racing in Riyadh gets underway at 3pm KSA today, and you can follow all the action live at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dfHDNR8t3U.
For all the latest news and results from the Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia, follow: https://twitter.com/JCSA_Racing.
