Winner of Grade 1 Locked is the latest American runner to skip the lucrative $20 million Saudi Cup (G1) on February 22 at King Abdulaziz Racetrack in Riyadh. Earlier in the week, the Saudi Cup suffered a significant setback when the connections of recent Pegasus World Cup (G1) White Abarrio and 2024 champion 3-year-old Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) star Sierra Leone decided not to participate in the lucrative competition. Locked, who is being trained by Todd Pletcher for Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Walmac Farm, is coming off of a Pegasus World Cup second-place performance. The 4-year-old Gun Runner’s kid did a great job in his first effort, going 1 1/8 miles and closing from seventh to second. Locked had just won a game that ended the season in the 2024 Cigar Mile Handicap (G2) at Aqueduct Racetrack.
On the social media site X, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners stated that Locked’s next race would be in the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap (G1) on March 1 at Santa Anita Park. The decision to pass the Saudi Cup came about as a result of “timing, logistics, and doing our best to map out a domestic campaign capable of posturing him for maximum success in the most prestigious, stallion value-enhancing events,” Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners founder and president Aron Wellman told BloodHorse on February 8. The only American competitor still in the race is Sharif Mohamad Alhariri and Lucky Seven Stable’s Rattle N Roll, according to the official list of Saudi Cup nominees, which was made public Friday night. Rattle N Roll, a triple graded stakes winner, achieved a remarkable score in Riyadh’s local prep for the Saudi Cup in last month’s Custodian Of The Two Holy Mosques Cup (G3).
The Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) winner and 2024 champion female sprinter Soul of an Angel, who was listed as also-eligible for the Saudi Cup, was no longer considered for the race, according to a report published by the Daily Racing Form on Friday night. Soul of an Angel will be aiming toward the Madison Stakes (G1) at Keeneland on April 5, according to Mark Cornett, the bloodstock agent and racing manager for the mare’s part-owner, C2 Racing, who spoke to the Daily Racing Form.
