Yibir (foaled 14 April 2018) is a Champion British Thoroughbred racehorse. He showed considerable promise as a juvenile in 2020 when he won two of his four races including the Haynes, Hanson & Clark Stakes. He was beaten in his first three starts as a three-year-old and was subsequently gelded. On his return to the track he improved to become a top-class turf performer, winning the Bahrain Trophy, Great Voltigeur Stakes, Jockey Club Derby and Breeders' Cup Turf. Yibir was awarded the Eclipse Award for US Champion Male Turf Horse.
Background
Yibir is a chestnut horse with a white sock on his left foreleg who was bred and owned by Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin organisation. He was sent into training with Charlie Appleby, whose stable is based at Newmarket, Suffolk, but typically relocates to Dubai in winter.
He was sired by Dubawi a top-class son of Dubai Millennium, whose wins included the Irish 2,000 Guineas and the Prix Jacques Le Marois. At stud, Dubawi has been a highly-successful breeding stallion, siring major winners such as Monterosso, Al Kazeem, Makfi, Lucky Nine and Night of Thunder. Yibir's dam Rumh was a German mare who won four races in England including the Listed Ballymacoll Stud Stakes. She was a descendant of the Irish mare Le Melody (foaled 1971), the dam of Ardross and the female-line ancestor of Electrocutionist and Scorpion. Rumh had previously produce Yibir's full-sister Wild Illusion.
Racing career
2020: two-year-old season
Yibir began his racing career in a novice race (for horses with no more than two previous wins) over seven furlongs on soft ground at Newmarket Racecourse on 18 June and started the 11/8 favourite. He hung badly to the right for most of the race and came home third of the four runners behind his less fancied stablemate Master of the Seas, beaten more than ten lengths by the winner. On 10 July at the same track he led for most of the way in a seven furlong maiden race but was outpaced in the closing stages and finished fifth behind Youth Spirit. James Doyle took the ride when the colt started 13/8 favourite for a maiden over the same distance at Sandown Park and recorded his first success as he led from the start and kept on "gamely" to win by three quarters of a length from King Vega. On his final run of the year Yibir was ridden by William Buick when he started 5/2 second favourite behind the John Gosden-trained Megallan in the Haynes, Hanson & Clark Stakes over one mile at Newbury Racecourse on 18 September. He took the lead soon after the start and "kept on strongly" to beat Megallan by a length. After the race Buick said "He is a big horse, but he has done nothing wrong and is learning on the job. Today he has come forward again. It was nice ground here today and stepping up to a mile has suited him. He is the type of horse, looking at him, that whatever he does this year, he will do better next year".
2021: three-year-old season
Spring
For his first appearance as a three-year-old, Yibir was stepped up in class and distance for the Group 3 bet365 Classic Trial over ten furlongs at Sandown on 23 April when he started the 4/1 second choice in a ten-runner field. He led for most of the way before being overtaken by Alenquer in the straight and lost second place to his stablemate Adayar in the final strides. In the Listed Dee Stakes at Chester Racecourse two weeks later he started favourite but came home fourth behind El Drama after racing "awkwardly" and hanging to the left in the last quarter mile. On 21 May in the Cocked Hat Stakes over eleven furlongs at Goodwood Racecourse he raced in second place for most of the race but hung to the right in the last quarter mile and was beaten four lengths by Lone Eagle. Shortly after the race Yibir was gelded.
Summer
Yibir returned to the track at Newmarket on 8 July when he started 6/4 favourite for the Group 3 Bahrain Trophy over thirteen furlongs. Ridden by Doyle he was restrained towards the rear of the five-runner field before moving up to take the lead approaching the final furlong and won "readily" by two and a half lengths. Charlie Appleby commented "This horse, as we have learnt this spring, is a great traveller. We have always just felt he's looked a bit more awkward in the last furlong of his races. He has been gelded since his last start. Would I say it has changed his homework? No because he has always been a good work horse. We were confident coming into today if we could ride him cold I felt he had the class that he could take himself there comfortably enough that we didn’t have to ask too much at the business end and that is what he showed today."