Photo:

Kaz Ishida / Eclipse Sportswire – edited

There are horse races, and then there are Horse Races. The 2025 edition of the Saudi Cup would emphatically fall into the latter.

The sublime beauty of the sport was on full display Saturday in Saudi Arabia, where Forever Young and Romantic Warrior turned in a fantastic display of everything to love about the sport.

Say what you will about an obscene amount of money offered in a nation which still has a long way to go to be up to acceptable in simple human rights. When the gates sprung open for this year’s Grade 1, $20 million Saudi Cup, it was all about the horses.

It was about two horses in particular. Forever Young and Romantic Warrior.

A classy, international field of 14 would enter the starting gate for the world’s richest race. For a dozen of them, they would soon become bit players in an Oscar-worthy drama. Mere movie extras to a pair of megastars who command all of the attention.

That the race would come down to the pair was no surprise. Pure class is embodied in both.

Forever Young never has failed to fire in his world travels. Mugged and nosed from Kentucky Derby glory last year, the Japan star has made a habit of relentless stretch runs in the world’s best dirt races. The 4-year-old son of Real Steel has proven his tenacity and ability time and time again.

Three years his senior, Romantic Warrior has also been an international star. Although he never has graced U.S. race fans with his presence, the hero of Hong Kong has taken his show on the road to great success around the globe. One thing that the Ireland-bred veteran never had done, however, was run on dirt.

As dominant as Romantic Warrior had been of late on turf courses in Australia, Dubai, Japan and Hong Kong, it was time to find a new test for the highest-rated horse in the world. Bring on Forever Young and the Saudi Cup.

The stage was set for something special at King Abdulaziz Racecourse. Two stars of very different ages and backgrounds would meet for the first time with bragging rights and a bundle of cash on the line. Matchups like this rarely deliver on the hype, however.

This one did.

It doesn’t get any better.

Forever Young overcame his tendency to break a beat slowly and hustled out to join the leaders from the far outside post with urging from his rider Ryusei Sakai. From there he never got a breather, taking on all contenders until the real challenge would come.

Romantic Warrior, meanwhile, tasted kickback from the dirt for the first time in a race. Any questions on how he would handle the new surface quickly fell by the wayside as the son of Acclamation under rider James McDonald tracked the leading group before swinging wide to make his move.

The phrase turn of foot in horse racing is used often in races on the grass. On Saturday it was a turf horse who made an electrifying move on the dirt. Romantic Warrior went by Forever Young at the head of the long stretch like only truly special runners can.

It was the type of explosive burst of speed at a key juncture of the race that ends the competition almost every single time.

Except this time, it didn’t.

In a flash, Romantic Warrior was clear, but Forever Young was just getting going. Leaving the rest behind in an instant, this Saudi Cup was now a two-horse affair.

For every fan that wanted to see these two run their best, to see who was best, the wish was granted.

Once Forever Young overcame the kitchen sink being thrown at him, he began to dig into the lead. With every stride he inched closer to the top-rated horse in the world. Unwavering was his rally until hitting the wire a neck in front.

In defeat, Romantic Warrior not only ran a huge race in his dirt debut, but he also really ran too well to lose. His reputation will only grow from this performance.

As for Forever Young, now a winner of 8 of 10 lifetime and unlucky not to be better, this victory always will be remembered. No matter what he does for the rest of his career, his Saudi Cup victory will be a testament of his courage and talent.

The 2025 edition of the Saudi Cup was one of those rare horse races to bring together two fantastic horses in their prime and they both delivered.

What a horse race it was.