“Somebody’s already said to me that this may be Godolphin’s best ever day of racing,” said Hugh Anderson, Godolphin’s Managing Director for the UK and Dubai, at Ascot Racecourse in the UK on Saturday after an afternoon that will rank among the operation’s most memorable.
His reaction was easy to understand. Across two continents, horses carrying Godolphin’s trademark royal blue colours won three prestigious Group 1 races, while the Dubai-owned stable secured Britain’s Champion Owner title for a record-extending 18th time.
The day had begun thousands of miles away at Royal Randwick, Sydney. In the A$20 million Everest, Godolphin homebred Tempted faced Ka Ying Rising, Hong Kong’s sprinting phenomenon whose 21 consecutive victories had made him the horse everyone wanted to beat.
Tempted did just that. Prepared by Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Ciaron Maher and ridden with conviction by Chad Schofield, she held off the favourite to give Godolphin its first Everest victory. The result was a reminder that even the strongest record offers no protection once the starting gates open.
Hours later, the spotlight shifted to Ascot, where Godolphin was preparing to turn an already remarkable day into an historic one.
Talk Of New York, trained by Charlie Appleby and ridden by William Buick, captured the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes before Ombudsman, prepared by John and Thady Gosden, then swept past Calandagan in the Champion Stakes.
Buick, Godolphin’s retained jockey since 2015, then completed a memorable treble aboard Fifth Column in the Balmoral Handicap.
Three wins at British Champions Day, two of them at the highest level, had been added to the Everest triumph before the celebrations were over.
But the most enduring prize of the afternoon was the Owners’ Championship itself. Since 2015, Britain’s Flat owners’ title has been settled on prize money earned from May 2 to October 17.
Godolphin underlined its dominance of British racing during the season, amassing an impressive £6.61 million in prize money from 99 winners and 328 runners during the Flat Owners’ Championship.
That kind of success is not built on one or two headline-making performances alone; it demands depth, consistency and excellence across an entire campaign. For Godolphin, a record-extending 18th title was therefore far more than yet another trophy – it was the latest chapter in a remarkable story that began in Dubai in 1992.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, whose passion for horses began long before he became one of the most influential figures in international thoroughbred racing, founded the operation to compete for racing’s foremost prizes across the world.
Within four years, Godolphin had won its first British Owners’ Championship in 1996.
However, Sheikh Mohammed’s record in Britain predates Godolphin. Racing under his own name and famous maroon silks, Sheikh Mohammed won nine Owners’ Championships, including five in succession from 1985 to 1989.
Combined with Godolphin’s 18, this brings the total to an extraordinary 27 British Owners’ Championships associated with Sheikh Mohammed’s ownership.
Add the seven titles credited to his late brother, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, under the commonly used championship tally, and the Maktoum family total reaches an astonishing 34 British Owners’ Championships.
Those numbers help explain the family’s lasting influence in a country where thoroughbred racing is centuries old.
But the championships tell only part of the story. Just as important are the great horses that helped make Godolphin a global racing force.
Emirati trainer Saeed bin Suroor was central to Godolphin’s formative years. He became the operation’s longest-serving trainer and helped deliver its first British owners’ crown in 1996, the same year the iconic Dubai World Cup was first run at Nad Al Sheba Racecourse.
Bin Suroor’s roll of honour includes champions like Swain, twice successful in the King George, Daylami, a King George and Breeders’ Cup Turf winner, and Dubai Millennium, Sheikh Mohammed’s outstanding 2000 Dubai World Cup champion.
Fantastic Light added another Breeders’ Cup Turf, while the unbeaten Lammtarra, trained by bin Suroor under the wider Godolphin operation but racing in Sheikh Saeed bin Maktoum’s colours, won the coveted Epsom Derby, King George and Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in 1995.
Reflecting on an earlier career honour, bin Suroor credited Sheikh Mohammed for the “opportunity, guidance and support” that helped shape his career.
His contribution remains part of Godolphin’s foundations, and a reminder that the great horses depended on the people who prepared them.
Since his appointment in July 2013, Charlie Appleby has extended that record across major international meetings, winning the Epsom Derby with Masar and Adayar, the Melbourne Cup with Cross Counter and repeated Breeders’ Cup prizes.
Appleby and William Buick have forged one of modern racing’s most successful partnerships, building on the legacy of Saeed bin Suroor and Frankie Dettori, the celebrated duo who helped establish Godolphin as a global racing powerhouse.
In September 2026, Appleby reached the remarkable milestone of 100 Group 1 victories, further strengthening his place among the sport’s leading trainers.
Godolphin’s 2026 championship triumph was built by both established stars and emerging talent.
The John Gosden-trained Ombudsman followed his Dubai Turf triumph with a second consecutive victory in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot before returning to the same course to capture the Champion Stakes, prompting Gosden to describe him as ‘the best mile-and-a-quarter horse I have trained, definitely.’
Beyond the achievements of its star horses, Godolphin had plenty of other memorable successes to celebrate during the season.
Bin Suroor added another remarkable milestone to Godolphin’s history when ten-year-old Dubai Future became the oldest winner ever to carry the famous royal blue silks, defying his advancing years to capture the Group 3 Henry II Stakes at Sandown in May, while Rebel’s Romance, Godolphin’s most decorated horse, signed off with a win at Newmarket’s July Festival.
Anderson was equally generous in acknowledging those behind Godolphin’s remarkable success, from its trainers, assistants, jockeys to the stable and stud staff whose dedication often goes unseen.
“Racing is, as always, a team sport,” he said.
But amid the celebrations of another historic triumph, Anderson reserved his most heartfelt tribute for the man whose vision, ambition and enduring passion had made Godolphin’s extraordinary journey possible.
“A special thank you must of course go to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed, whose unwavering support of and passion for our industry is an inspiration to us all,” he concluded.
THE ROYAL BLUE RECORD BOOK
18 British Owners’ Championships
1996 • 1998 • 1999 • 2001 • 2004 • 2006 • 2007 • 2012 • 2013 • 2015 • 2016 • 2017 • 2018 • 2021 • 2022 • 2024 • 2025 • 2026
GODOLPHIN BY THE NUMBERS
9,810 victories worldwide • 486 Group 1 triumphs • 372 winners in 2026
Figures as of October 19, 2026
Source: Khaleej Times