Six Speed Takes Over Meydan and Sets His Sights on the Kentucky Derby

The victory of Six Speed (Not This Time) in the UAE 2,000 Guineas (G3) during Fashion Friday at Meydan Racecourse was far more than a graded success on the Dubai Racing Carnival calendar. It was a performance that combined authority, maturity, and international projection, placing the American three-year-old firmly on the Derby Trail map, with his sights set on the first Saturday in May and the ultimate goal of the Kentucky Derby.

Six Speed (Not This Time) led throughout in the UAE 2,000 Guineas (G3).

From the break, Six Speed made it clear that the plan would be simple and effective. With sharp early speed, he took control of the race without needing to force the pace, managing his energy with notable intelligence. Unlike other colts that rely exclusively on the lead, the son of Not This Time showed the ability to relax during the running, maintaining a fluid and economical action. Turning into the stretch, he responded with a sustained change of gear, pulling away from his rivals and crossing the wire with visual authority that confirmed his superiority.

The reading of the race was impeccable and the result emphatic. Over a mile on dirt, a distance that often exposes tactical and physical limitations, Six Speed handled the challenge with ease, leaving the impression that there was still more in reserve. This was not a circumstantial victory nor the product of a favorable race flow; it was the win of a colt who displayed class, mental maturity, and a clear understanding of his job.

With this success, Six Speed improved his record to four starts, with three wins and just one finish outside the board, accumulating USD 202,180 in earnings. He was also assigned a rating of 105 pounds, positioning him as the leading three-year-old on the Middle East circuit, and added 20 points toward the Kentucky Derby, a crucial reward within the qualification system.

The architect of this campaign is Bhupat Seemar, a trainer enjoying a particularly strong moment. During this Meydan meeting, Seemar recorded four victories, consolidating his status as one of the leading names of the Dubai winter season. After the UAE 2,000 Guineas, the trainer was clear in describing his colt’s virtues, publicly stating that Six Speed is “a very tactical horse, with outstanding early speed, but with the ability to relax during the race, manage his energy in a mature way, and then accelerate strongly on the far turn.”

These statements are not mere praise. Seemar knows the path to the American elite: he made his Kentucky Derby debut in 2022, an experience that now allows him to approach this new challenge with greater perspective. The trainer himself emphasized that the ultimate objective is Kentucky, while clarifying that the immediate focus remains on the upcoming Carnival targets, particularly the Al Bastakiya and, above all, the UAE Derby—the race that historically serves as the true passport to Churchill Downs.

Six Speed races for an internationally ambitious ownership group composed of Brunetti Dugan Stables, Black Type Thoroughbreds, Steve Adkisson, and Swinbank Stables. This is an ownership group willing to invest, project, and compete at the highest level, supporting a program that combines commercial judgment, sporting patience, and a clear long-term vision.

Six Speed’s journey to this point began in one of the most demanding commercial arenas in the world. The colt was purchased as a breeze-up prospect at the Tattersalls Craven Breeze Up Sale, where Bhupat Seemar acquired him for 220,000 guineas, approximately USD 315,000, directly from Lynn Lodge Stud. The operation was surgical: the trainer backed a colt that combined precocity, athletic action, and a deeply attractive pedigree. Today, that investment is not only justified, but clearly revalued in both sporting terms and future projection.

From a genetic standpoint, Six Speed is a product that balances functional speed with classic inheritance. He is a son of Not This Time, a stallion who has established himself as one of the most influential of his generation in the United States. The progeny of Not This Time have shown versatility, dirt aptitude, and a notable ability to perform on major stages, producing fast horses with sufficient stamina to tackle classic challenges.

Beyond individual names, Six Speed’s genetic value lies in the athletic architecture created by the cross. Not This Time transmits a physical pattern characterized by early power, efficient action, and the ability to sustain speed under pressure. What is truly relevant, however, is how that energy is structured when combined with a proven stamina-oriented female line. In Six Speed, one does not see “fragile” speed dependent on early expenditure, but rather functional speed capable of being maintained without mechanical deterioration—a trait increasingly sought in modern American racing. This quality explains his ease in dominating races on the lead without losing coordination or respiratory efficiency, a decisive factor when projecting his performance beyond a mile.

On the dam side, the picture becomes even more compelling. His dam, Browse, is a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro, one of the great transmitters of class, stamina, and consistency in modern breeding. Browse was stakes placed on the track and has already proven her worth as a broodmare, having produced Pipit, a stakes winner in the United States by Quality Road. In addition, Browse is a sister to Imagining, a Group 1 winner, reinforcing the immediate competitive strength of the family.

The depth of the female line is one of Six Speed’s greatest assets. He belongs to the legendary family 1-x, one of the most influential families in the Stud Book, whose tenth dam is La Troienne, a Reine-de-Course and true cornerstone of American breeding. This is not a distant reference without present impact: all of the last five dams in Six Speed’s pedigree are black-type producers, a compelling indicator of genetic continuity.

His fourth dam is Dance Number, a daughter of Northern Dancer, a Group 1 winner and a cornerstone mare of the historic Ogden Phipps operation. Further back appears Daydreaming, a stakes winner who is a sister to Girolamo and Accelerator, and also the dam of Super Saver, winner of the Kentucky Derby (G1). This is no minor detail: America’s greatest classic is not unfamiliar territory for this family, but rather a goal already achieved from the same genetic root.

The female line ultimately completes the picture. Family 1-x, with La Troienne as its taproot, provides not only historic class but a consistent transmission of mental toughness, durability, and suitability for major stages. In this context, the presence of Medaglia d’Oro as the sire of Browse acts as an amplifier of inheritable stamina, balancing the sire’s precocity with a solid aerobic reserve. The fact that this same family has produced Super Saver, a Kentucky Derby winner, is not anecdotal, but rather evidence that Six Speed’s genetic foundation has already proven itself at the highest level and over the classic distance. That combination of mental composure, genetic depth, and physical efficiency is what makes Six Speed more than just a fast colt, it positions him as a candidate with genuine genetic structure to sustain the 2,000-meter challenge.

From a modern Derby perspective, Six Speed presents a particularly attractive profile. He is not an extreme stamina horse in the traditional sense, but rather a colt who combines efficient early speed, inherited aerobic capacity, and notable mental solidity, qualities increasingly decisive in 2,000-meter races where positioning, pace, and economy of motion are key. The cross of Not This Time over a Medaglia d’Oro mare, supported by family 1-x, offers an ideal balance between initial power and functional endurance.

In terms of qualification, the 20 points already earned place Six Speed in a favorable position within the Kentucky Derby system. The next logical step is the UAE Derby, where not only decisive points will be at stake, but also the definitive validation of his ability to compete under maximum pressure and against a top-class international field. A solid performance in that race would make his trip to Louisville a natural consequence rather than a risky gamble.

Six Speed is not a circumstantial product of the Dubai calendar nor a name inflated by a single performance. He is the result of an intelligent purchase, precise training, and an elite genetic structure, backed by a family that has produced champions for generations. From the Craven Breeze Up to the UAE 2,000 Guineas, his trajectory has been upward, coherent, and without shortcuts.

The challenge now is to translate the talent shown at Meydan into confirmation on a global scale. If he can maintain his level in the UAE Derby, the road to Churchill Downs will be clear. And then, Six Speed will cease to be merely an international promise and become a genuine contender in the most famous race in the world.