Cristiano Ronaldo has achieved greatness as a footballer, and the international superstar now has a horse named after him who will make his debut this winter in Dubai.
Crseven, named after Ronaldo’s CR7 brand, is an unraced juvenile colt trained by Salem bin Ghadayer for Phoenix Thoroughbreds.
Purchased in the US, the son of American Pharaoh will run for the ladies-only Phoenix syndicate and is in training alongside Dubai World Cup runner-up Gronkowski, who was named after ex-NFL player Rob Gronkowski.
Explaining the naming of Crseven, Pamela Cordina, representing the syndicate, said: “It was the boss’s (Amer Abdulaziz) idea and our ladies loved it. He enjoys watching top-class sport and has a lot of admiration for the athletes involved so likes to pay tribute to them.
“Most people will be aware of Gronkowski but Phoenix Thoroughbreds also have Lebron J close to making a debut in the States. Racing might be the only place you get to have a top-class NFL player, training alongside a leading soccer player while one of the best ever basketball players also represents the same team!”
While Crseven’s debut is not imminent, the hope is he will be out on track at Meydan before the end of the year and Cordina added: “He’s [Ghadayer] really happy with how our colt is progressing, he tells us he’s working really well and will be ready to race soon.
“With luck, he has inherited some of his father’s talent and although he’s from the same family as multiple Grade 1 winner Quality Road, we’re trying not to get carried away. We’ll see where we are after he makes his debut and take it from there. Let’s hope he can win a fraction of the honours his human counterpart has won.”
Lebron J, named after NBA legend LeBron James, will be seen in action this week with the colt set to be in action at Remington Park on Wednesday.
