Trainer Ryan Eyes Dubai Golden Shaheen for Book'em Danno Next

Trainer Derek S. Ryan said Book’em Danno “might make Dubai. The plane leaves on [March 17], that gives us four more works,” positioning the 5-year-old gelding for the March 28 Golden Shaheen at Meydan, a $2 million, six-furlong Group 1 on Dubai World Cup undercard. The comment to Daily Racing Form and Paulick Report elevates the Meydan target as a live alternative to domestic spring options.

Ryan’s confidence rests on recent training: Book’em Danno has posted three works in the last 60 days, most recently a four-furlong move in :49.90 at Tampa Bay Downs on Feb. 15, according to Daily Racing Form and Paulick Report. The trainer framed the March 17 plane date as the logistical cutoff that would allow four remaining breeze days before the March 28 Golden Shaheen, making the timed Feb. 15 drill a key checkpoint in the build toward an international campaign.

Jockey Paco Lopez’s availability complicates the timeline. Lopez received a six-month suspension under published HISA rulings that ends March 22, and he has been recovering from a broken ankle suffered Feb. 7 at Fair Grounds, reports Horse Racing Nation and Paulick/DRF syndication. Those dates place Lopez’s suspension end after the March 17 plane date Ryan cited and just six days before the Golden Shaheen, while his injury recovery timetable has not been set, leaving open whether Lopez would ride if Book’em Danno ships.

Book’em Danno arrives with top-level form: the New Jersey-bred dark bay or brown gelding by Bucchero won four of five starts in 2025, including the Aug. 23 Forego Stakes (G1) at Saratoga, and was named the 2025 Eclipse Award champion male sprinter at the Jan. 22 awards ceremony. Connections list career earnings of over $1.8 million, owner Atlantic Six Racing, LLC, and breeder Gregory J. Kilka & Bright View Farm, with BloodHorse providing pedigree detail that lists dam Adorabella by Ghostzapper.

Ryan’s thinking on an international trip has shifted since last year. Earlier he told NJBreds, “We’re not going to Dubai. It’s too close. I’d have to ship next Sunday. It’s three weeks and I don’t like to run back in three weeks. Then you miss the early summer races here. Right now, it just doesn’t fit in.” That earlier reluctance followed a Boston Handicap prep at Colonial Downs in which Book’em Danno returned after 97 days, won by 2 1/2 lengths under Paco Lopez and “earned a 96 Beyer figure,” per NJBreds.

Book’em Danno has prior Middle East experience, finishing second to Forever Young in the 2024 G3 Saudi Derby at King Abdulaziz Racecourse, but a trip to Meydan would be his Dubai debut. Domestic alternatives remain on the table: the Carter Handicap (G2) at Aqueduct and the Commonwealth Stakes (G3) at Keeneland both run April 4, one week after the Golden Shaheen and cited by DRF and Horse Racing Nation as fallback options.

With three works recorded in the last 60 days and a timed Feb. 15 drill, Ryan’s March 17 shipping window will be decisive. Final nomination, travel and rider confirmations remain unresolved; Ryan’s remark to Daily Racing Form makes the Golden Shaheen a conditional target as the team completes its remaining breeze schedule.