Brown Panther is firmly on course for the Gold Cup at Meydan after pleasing his trainer in a routine work-out after racing at Wolverhampton.
The much-travelled horse finished eighth in the 2013 Melbourne Cup and won last year’s Group One Irish Champion Stakes for his owner, former England footballer Michael Owen.
The seven-year-old did not figure on his final start of 2014 in the Breeders’ Cup Turf, but trainer Tom Dascombe reported his stable star had returned from his winter break as good as ever ahead of Dubai World Cup night on March 28.
“He just had a canter round Wolverhampton with a pony, just to take the freshness out of him more than anything,” Dascombe said.
“He seems in great form at the moment and, all being well, we’re on course to run in the Gold Cup.
“We’ve been delighted with him since he came back into work. He doesn’t actually go anywhere during the winter.
“We just turn him out for a bit and then bring him back and he’s a horse that seems to really thrive on exercise.”
Richard Kingscote has steered Brown Panther to nine of his 10 wins.
The jockey has been sidelined since a fall at Wolverhampton in November but is set for an imminent return as he aims to get race fitness under his belt before his Dubai mission.
“Richard rode the horse (at Wolverhampton) and unless something goes wrong in the next couple of weeks, he’ll ride him in Dubai,” Dascombe said.
