Most of the crowd had straggled out of Nad Al Sheba Racecourse and there were no other horses in the holding barn behind the grandstand when Curlin returned there from the test barn following the greatest victory of his career.

Together, trainer Steve Asmussen, jockey Robby Albarado and owner Jess Jackson have won more than 8,000 races—but none even remotely like the Dubai World Cup (UAE-I).

As racing fans and participants from around the world gathered at Nad Al Sheba Racecourse on Thursday for "Breakfast with the Stars," there was one name that seemed to be on everyone's lips: Curlin. People from Australia to Europe to South America to Asia all wanted to see the American Horse of the Year with their own eyes, to gauge how good he might really be before he races for the $6 million Dubai World Cup (UAE-I) on Saturday.