Much of the limelight went to some of racing's biggest names last night, but Meydan Racecourse provided a platform for the small guy to flourish as well.
First to step up to the stage was Lucky Houdalakis, the South African trainer who described his victory in the Al Quoz Sprint with JJ The Jet Plane as a triumph for the underdog.
Some of the greatest trainers in racing were at Meydan last night, including the likes of Henry Cecil, the 10-time British champion, Aidan O'Brien, the Irish maestro, and Bob Baffert, the dual Dubai World Cup winner.
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And yet Houdalakis, a former jockey, has only been training for three-and-a-half years.
In fact, he was never meant to be a trainer at all, and his victorious charge was probably never meant to be a racehorse, either.
Houdalakis was forced to retire from the saddle after a catalogue of injuries. In place of a jockey's life he would instead enjoy rounds of golf and long lunches. Finally, his wife decided he had played enough.
With good fortune there was a horse that would help lift Houdalakis out of his enforced retirement.
JJ The Jet Plane failed at auction due to bad confirmation.
He was later bought for the knock-down price of R70,000 (Dh36,000) by Hendrik du Preez, who liked his breeding and sent him to Houdalakis's fledgling yard.
Now JJ The Jet Plane has won six Group 1s and 13 races in total.
"I'm only a baby trainer," Houdalakis said. "This is one of the first horses I got. I just consider myself blessed."
JJ The Jet Plane has taken Houdalakis, a part-owner, all over the world, including victories in the UAE, Hong Kong and England.
The sprinter claimed the handler's first international victory in December with the Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint from subsequent Golden Shaheen winner Rocket Man.
Early on in his career, JJ The Jet Plane's successes attracted admirers and Houdalakis turned down an offer of US$1 million (Dh3.67m) for the horse.
"It's hard for us small stables to keep horses because when they start winning the big stables come and they offer lots of money," Houdalakis said.
There was a large South African contingent at Meydan last night, and at a time when the country's sport is in the doldrums after the cricket team's shock exit from the World Cup, they had much to cheer about.
Despite his success last night, Houdalakis believed that the experience of proving himself among the world's best for the first time was incomparable.
"We were the underdogs in Hong Kong but that was awesome for the whole of South Africa," he said. "It's wonderful winning on World Cup night, but when I think of Hong Kong it still brings tears to my eyes."
If Houdalakis struck early for the underdog, then Mickael Barzalona, the young French jockey, carried the torch when he defeated Ryan Moore, the three-time British champion jockey, in the UAE Derby. No filly had ever beaten the colts in the Classic contest, but Barzalona galloped into the record books when Khawlah held on against the late surge of the O'Brien-trained Master Of The Hounds.
"Mickael is a brilliant jockey," said Godolphin's Saeed bin Suroor, Khawlah's trainer. "He has done really well for us and I think he is going to be one of the best in the world." The gilt was added in the biggest race of all when the 18-year-old finished third in the World Cup aboard Monterosso.
If the underdogs performed last night, Carl O'Callaghan, their natural leader, never got the opportunity to showcase his talents.
O'Callaghan, who would have been bidding to win his second consecutive Golden Shaheen, was dealt a blow when Kinsale King was scratched hours before the big sprint.
O'Callaghan famously slept rough under the Brooklyn Bridge before his life was changed by winning the $2m sprint last year.
"We really don't know what it is." he said. "The best way to explain it is that he had a hypersensitive reaction to something. He's got bumps on his face, and hives on his pasterns. It's really disappointing to have travelled halfway across the world and then to lose out like this."
But O'Callaghan, displaying the fighting spirit that lifts an underdog from the shadows into the light, refused to be cowed.
"I always look on the bright side and I'm just happy that the horse is OK and we didn't do anything stupid like run it. We've also got a really nice horse running at Santa Anita tonight, so life goes on."
sports@thenational.ae
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Yuki Means Happiness
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John Murray
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Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
