HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Sibelius used a victory in the 2022 Mr. Prospector at Gulfstream Park as precursor to the most important win of his career several months later in the Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen at Meydan. His trainer, Jeremiah O’Dwyer, is hoping history will repeat itself when he brings Sibelius back to defend his title Saturday against eight rivals in the Grade 3 fixture for older horses, which shares top billing on the 11-race program with its filly counterpart, the Grade 3 Sugar Swirl. Sibelius had shown flashes of brilliance during the summer of 2022 when posting back-to-back victories at Saratoga and Pimlico for which he earned triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures. He maintained his good form after shipping to Florida for the winter, capturing the seven-furlong Mr. Prospector and the six-furlong Pelican at Tampa Bay Downs six weeks later as preps for his hard-fought nose decision over Switzerland with multiple Grade 1 winner Gunite finishing just another half-length back in third in the Golden Shaheen. Junior Alvarado was aboard Sibelius for his two Florida tallies, with Ryan Moore getting the job done in Dubai. “Our goal is to try and get back to Dubai with him,” O’Dwyer said. “Obviously, he’s got to show up in the Mr. Prospector and then maybe the Pelican again. That worked last year, but he’d have to show up in both those races to let us know that he’s on his A game to take him back to Dubai.” Sibelius has started just three times since returning from Dubai, finishing a well-beaten fourth in the Aristides at Churchill Downs, seventh in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby, and most recently fifth in the Grade 2 Phoenix at Keeneland. :: Access morning workout reports straight from the tracks and get an edge with DRF Clocker Reports “He did have to work very hard [in the Golden Shaheen] and it probably took more out of him than we anticipated and taken a little longer for the gas tank to fully replenish,” O’Dwyer said. “But we’ve been patient with him, we haven’t over-raced him, we’ve given him time. “I couldn’t be happier with the horse. I think we have him where we need him, and we’ll let him do the talking.” A pair of 3-year-olds, Gilmore and Great Navigator, could provide Sibelius with his chief competition, along with 7-year-old Long Range Toddy, who owns a bit of a home-field advantage being stabled here with trainer Victor Barboza and having two wins in as many starts over the local track. Long Range Toddy, runner-up in the 2022 Phoenix, has been freshened since posting a pair of well-graded victories here during the summer. Gilmore will be getting a little class relief after finishing seventh in the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby in his most recent start. His best race to date also came against Grade 1 opposition, a third-place finish in the seven-furlong Woody Stephens this spring at Belmont Park for which he earned a 104 Beyer Figure. Gilmore will be meeting older horses for the first time Saturday. Great Navigator is in the best form of his career and comes into the race off a third-place finish behind Cody’s Wish in the Grade 2 Vosburgh on Oct. 1 at Aqueduct. Sugar Swirl Intrepid Daydream, who will likely be favored in the six-furlong Sugar Swirl, was purchased privately just a week ago by Miller Racing LLC and turned over to trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. with this race explicitly in mind. The Maryland-bred brings a four-race win streak to South Florida along with a decided Beyer edge over her six rivals, topped by a career-best 91 for her 5 1/4-length triumph in the restricted Politely Stakes on Nov. 24 at Laurel Park. “The deal came together late, was finalized just last Friday, and she came to me here on Monday,” Joseph said. “Gary Capuano, her previous trainer, has been very accommodating and told me he was actually planning on stretching her out and running her longer this weekend in Maryland. “She’s run fast numbers, which is one of the reasons for the deal, and if all goes well we’ll bring her back in the Inside Information next.” The Grade 2 Inside Information will be run at seven furlongs on Jan. 27. :: Bet the races with a $200 First Deposit Match + FREE All Access PPs! Join DRF Bets. Intrepid Daydream is one of two fillies Joseph will send out in the Sugar Swirl, along with Bluefield, who wheels back on relatively short rest after proving a popular winner of the City of Ocala Stakes for Florida-breds just two weeks earlier at Tampa. “She’s in the best form of her life right now and this looks like a spot she can be very competitive in,” Joseph said when asked about bringing her back so quickly off her last start. “She’s not drawn ideally on the rail but last time she was kind of drawn inside as well. She just needs to find her stride and work out a trip.” Headland, who crossed the wire second but was ultimately placed third in the Grade 2 Gallant Bloom on Oct. 1 at Aqueduct, will make her local debut in the Sugar Swirl and looms a key player along with the multiple stakes winner My Destiny, Olivia Darling, Napa Candy, and speedy Spirit Wind, who has been idle since finishing fourth behind Echo Zulu in the Grade 3 Winning Colors on May 29 at Churchill Downs. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.