Dubai: Paddys Day, the winner of two Group 2 races during the recently concluded Dubai World Cup Carnival, returned to his native America to claim two more prestigious accolades at the annual 2018 Darley Awards in Hollywood, California on Friday.
The seven-year-old won a third Darley Horse of the Year Award and the Best Older Horse of the Year Award at the event, which crowns the Arabian Horse Racing Champions of the USA. He won six of 11 starts in 2017.
Earlier this year, Paddys Day became the first Arabian horse in American history to earn more $1million when he won the Group 2 Mazrat Al Ruwayah at Meydan to take his career earnings to $1,024,746.
In a glittering career that began with three wins from four starts in his debut season in 2014, Paddys Day has gone on to record 24 victories from 40 starts, highlighted by eight Grade or Group 1 wins. One of these was in the Group 1 Al Maktoum Challenge Round One at Meydan.
Paddys Day is owned by Scott Powell of the Quarter Moon Ranch together with his wife Lori Powell.
The much-anticipated awards ceremony also featured the HH Shaikh Fatima Bin Mubarak Darley Awards. The event, which was held at the world-renowned Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, was organised by the Arabian Racing Cup and supported by the HH Shaikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Racing Festival.
One of the loudest cheers on a night went up for Val Bunting, who was bestowed with the HH Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Life-time Achievement Award.
Bunting, who describes herself as an avid supporter of horse welfare served at WAHO for over two decades and was on the steering committee for the establishment of Arabian Racing Organisation (UK), and also a member of both the Arab Horse Society, UK, and the Association Français Cheval Arab De Course (AFAC) in France.
The Darley Awards were founded by the Arabian Racing Cup in 1987 to honour the best in Arabian horse racing.
