It cost $2bn, has two courses, a 290 room-with-a-view luxury hotel, a marina and a racing museum... Welcome to Dubai's brand new Meydan racecourse which stages its first meeting on Thursday
The gulf state has struggled to pay the bills for its boom time excess but its ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is a long-time racing enthusiast and is in no mood to cut costs
Meydan chief executive Saeed Humaid al-Tayer wants the Dubai World Cup in March to go toe-to-toe with Royal Ascot and the Kentucky Derby as a social and sporting spectacular
Frankie Dettori rides Midshipman in Thursday's feature race and says of the course: "It's like Old Trafford, the Emirates and Wembley all rolled into one. When they turn the lights on it looks like a spaceship from Star Wars"
One of Australia's most successful trainers Bart Cummings is joined by two of Europe's top trainers saddling horses to run on Thursday both Luca Cumani and Dermot Weld, who has trained thousands of winners in his native Ireland
The highest-rated horse in Thursday's Group Three Maktoum Challenge, run over a mile, is Gloria De Campeao. Trained in France and bred in South America, the seven-year-old won last year's Singapore Cup
The seventh annual Dubai International Racing Carnival gets under way under the lights
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum arrives at the parade ring with other VIPs on the opening day at the spectacular racecourse
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