Racing at Al Rayyan will rise to a whole new level on Sunday, 21st December, as the Qatar Racing & Equestrian Club (QREC) stages its 25th Al Rayyan Race Meeting, a high-class International Race Day built around quality, ambition, and elite competition. With nine races scheduled from 3:00 pm to 7:40 pm, the undisputed highlight of the evening will be Race 9 – the Qatar Oaks (Thoroughbred), a Class 1 QA-Listed International restricted to three-year-old fillies only. With international attention firmly fixed, the 2000-metre Shalfa Qualifier will offer a lucrative prize purse of USD 100,000. The afternoon will be dominated by multiple Class 1 events that promise intensity from the very first stride.
The undisputed highlight of the evening will be Race 9 – the Qatar Oaks (Thoroughbred), a Class 1 QA-Listed International restricted to three-year-old fillies only. With international attention firmly fixed, the 2000-metre Shalfa Qualifier will offer a lucrative prize purse of USD 100,000 and is expected to showcase emerging fillies ready to announce themselves on a global stage.
The card will ignite at 3:00 pm with Race 1 – the Purebred Arabian Maiden Plate, a Class 6 contest for fillies and mares over 1600 metres. With a massive 18 contenders competing for USD 15,000, this opener will be rich in emotion, as inexperienced runners chase their first defining moment under race conditions.
At 3:35 pm, Race 2 – the Thoroughbred Maiden Plate will continue the search for emerging talent. Ten fillies and mares will contest this Class 6 event over 1600 metres, again for USD 15,000, with connections hoping to see promise turn into performance on the Al Rayyan track.
Quality will step up at 4:10 pm in Race 3 – the Thoroughbred Handicap 75–95, a Class 3 race over 1600 metres. Limited to six contenders, this contest for fillies and mares will carry USD 30,000 and is expected to be a tactically sharp affair where racecraft may prove decisive.
The Oaks sequence will begin in earnest at 4:45 pm with Race 4 – the Local Purebred Arabian Oaks, a Class 1 event for three-year-old fillies. With 12 contenders tackling 1600 metres for USD 55,000, local breeding strength and prestige will take centre stage.
International competition will intensify at 5:20 pm in Race 5 – the Purebred Arabian Oaks, another Class 1 contest, this time for three-year-old fillies in an International Race. Though the field will be compact with five contenders, the USD 55,000 prize money ensures nothing short of elite effort.
Staying ability will be tested at 5:55 pm in Race 6 – the Local Purebred Arabian Oaks for four-year-old fillies. Seven contenders will step up to 2000 metres in this Class 1 race, competing for USD 60,000, where maturity and endurance are expected to separate the best from the rest.
The international version will follow at 6:30 pm with Race 7 – the Purebred Arabian Oaks (International). Restricted to four-year-old fillies, this Class 1 contest over 2000 metres will feature six contenders chasing USD 60,000, adding another layer of global depth to the evening.
As the atmosphere sharpens, Race 8 at 7:05 pm will present the Local Thoroughbred Oaks, a Class 1 race for three-year-old fillies. Five contenders will compete over 1850 metres for a lucrative USD 75,000, serving as a powerful prelude to the night’s main event.
All eyes will then turn to 7:40 pm for Race 9, the Qatar Oaks – Thoroughbred. Reserved exclusively for three-year-old fillies, this Class 1 QA-Listed International Race will be contested over 2000 metres and will act as a Shalfa Qualifier. Nine contenders will step onto the track with ambition, composure, and dreams far bigger than a single evening, as they compete for the headline prize money of USD 100,000. The race is expected to be a defining moment, blending raw talent with future promise.                                                  Contenders include: Arizona Beauty, Bint Mohaather, Blessed Star, Bomba Del Mundo, Its All Peachy, Luxmundi, Magna Grecia Star, Make Love, Ripple Effect
With a schedule rich in Class 1 quality, a strong blend of local pride and international ambition, and a perfectly timed progression from promise to prestige, the 25th Al Rayyan Race Meeting is poised to deliver a race day that is as emotionally charged as it is competitively elite.
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