An unusual amalgamation of talents for a North American runner, Grade 1 winner Marsh Side likes to flash speed on the turf but has proven he can carry that speed and set a course record for 1 ¾ miles.

Knowing this blend of attributes better than anyone, trainer Neil Drysdale has decided that the best target for the six-year-old son of Gone West will be the US$5 million Dubai Sheema Classic (Gr.1) on March 28.

“His style of racing would be a good fit,” Drysdale said. “He likes a long stretch and a bit of give in the ground. And the layout of the course (at Nad al Sheba) will suit him.”

Drysdale said the course is somewhat reminiscent of Woodbine Race Track’s sweeping grass course, where Marsh Side scored the most significant victory of his career in the Canadian International Stakes (Gr.1) on October 4. That race is run over 1 ½ miles, a distance virtually equal to the Dubai Sheema Classic’s 2,400 meters.

Bred and owned by Robert S. Evans, Marsh Side was to have tried elite international competition again in November, when he was sent to Tokyo for the Japan Cup (Gr.1). However, once there, he developed a cough and fever and was scratched.

Since then, Marsh Side has only raced once, finishing seventh in the San Marcos Stakes (Gr.2) at Santa Anita Park on January 19. However, Drysdale said the horse had an excuse.

“The ground was too hard for him that day,” he explained.

Marsh Side worked four times in February, beginning with a three-furlong breeze at Hollywood Park on February 3 in :38 and concluding with a seven-furlong drill on the Santa Anita turf course on February 22 in 1:31.

Since Marsh Side does his best running from just off the pace, Drysdale said he expected him to be close to the lead in Dubai. He identified Hong Kong Cup (Gr.1) winner and Breeders’ Cup Turf (Gr.1) runner-up Eagle Mountain as “the horse to beat” in the prospective Sheema Classic field.

Overall, Marsh Side has won five of 19 starts while earning $1,439,706