After the phenomenal success of their first all-female syndicate, Phoenix Thoroughbreds have announced they will launch a second, with a brand new group of horses.
Phoenix Ladies Syndicate was initially set up with the goal of increasing female participation in racing and racehorse ownership across the Emirates and, with all the shares now sold, the Dubai-based operation feels the time is right to introduce a second group, which will also eye opportunities outside the UAE.
With a strike-rate hovering around 50% ‘PLS’ has been a revelation on the track but it’s the success off it, that has encouraged the group to embark on this new venture.
“We worked closely with Ahmed Bin Harmash in sourcing our bloodstock for Phoenix Ladies, so we were hopeful of a good start.” Said the Syndicate’s principle Pamela Cordina. “The amount of success we’ve had though has been what dreams are made of. It’s also shown how serious we are in not just making racehorse ownership enjoyable for our members but also that we want to win. We’re delighted to have sold all the shares so quickly and the response from those wanting to get involved has been incredible. We have members now from all sorts of backgrounds and have had enquiries from across the globe. We are taken back with how well things have gone for us.”
While the group’s horses have so far been, and in the main will continue to b,e based in Dubai, there is an ambition to expand into other countries to maintain the excellent groundwork already put in place.
“It was while we were setting up Phoenix Thoroughbreds that we realised just how little women were getting involved in racehorse ownership.” Continued Cordina reflecting on the Syndicate’s genesis. “By setting up Phoenix Ladies Two, we can give even more women a chance to come on this winning journey with us. We hope that eventually we will have a regular presence outside the Emirates and I recently spent some time at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling sale researching on how they run, market and operate all-female syndicates in Australia. It’s much more part of the racing fabric down there and they have some great incentives in place to encourage this sort of ownership. It’s something we’d like to be involved in and explore further.”
That international presence could be seen well before we see the first PLS Two horses trained in Australia, though, with the unbeaten Walking Thunder already being touted as a possible contender for the Kentucky Derby following a trio of comfortable victories at Meydan. Like most of the Group’s runners, he has a taking US dirt pedigree, a policy that has served the syndicate well.
“Walking Thunder has been a bit of a flag bearer for us.” Says a smiling Cordina. “We knew he was a good horse, but he’s proving a bit better than that. He’ll run in the UAE 2000 Guineas before heading to the UAE Derby on World Cup night. We’ve not yet discussed having a go at the Kentucky Derby, but I guess it would be the logical step if all goes to plan. From the beginning, we said we wanted the Syndicate to take our members to some of the biggest racing events in the world and it doesn’t get bigger than ‘the Derby’ so we’ll see. We won’t deviate too much from the types of horses we have bought so far when buying for PLS Two but we will consider new bloodlines as we look at racing in other territories.”
Work is already underway to find those horses for Phoenix Ladies Two and while Cordina and her members look towards new opportunities, the philosophies and aims of the group remain the same.
“The goal is still to encourage female participation in the sport and having made a great start we want to continue in that vein. This opportunity is open to ladies everywhere, not just in the UAE. The only major change to our approach is that you might get to see our Orange and White silks in the winners’ enclosures in places other than Dubai!”
If you would like to register your interest in getting involved in Phoenix Ladies Two, please mark an email for the attention of Pamela Cordina and send to info@phoenixfund.net.