started odds-on favourite but after taking the lead in the straight he was overtaken and beaten into second place by Mikki Swallow. The Kikuka Sho over 3000 metres at Kyoto on 22 October was run in heavy rain on soft ground. Starting the 3.9/1 second choice Al Ain moved to the outside to deliver his challenge in the straight but could make no headway and came home seventh of the eighteen runners behind Kiseki. In the 2017 World's Best Racehorse Rankings, Al Ain was given a rating of 118, making him 90th best horse in the world, the eighth best horse in Japan, and the seventeenth best three-year-old colt. 2018: four-year-old season Al Ain began his third campaign in the Grade 2 Kyoto Kinen on 11 February when he finished second to Clincher with Rey de Oro in third place. In the Grade 1 Osaka Hai at Hanshin on 1 April he was ridden by Yuga Kawada and started second favourite at odds of 2.6/1. After tracking the leaders he took second place behind Suave Richard in the straight but lost the runner-up spot to Persian Knight in the final strides. Four weeks later the colt was sent to Hong Kong for the Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Sha Tin Racecourse and finished fifth of the eight runners behind Pakistan Star. Al Ain returned from the summer break on 23 September at Nakayama when he finished second by a neck to Rey de Oro in the Sankei Sho All Comers. In the autumn edition of the Tenno Sho at Tokyo on 28 October he raced in second place for most of the way but was unable to quicken in the closing stages and camehome fourth behind Rey de Oro, Sungrazer and Kiseki. In November the colt was dropped back in distance to contest the Mile Championship over 1600 metres at Kyoto. Ridden by Kawada, he tracked the leader Aerolithe before taking the lead in the straight but was overtaken in the last 100 metres and finished third behind Stelvio and Persian Knight. In the 2018 World's Best Racehorse Rankings, Al Ain was again given a rating of 118, making him 78th best horse in the world. 2019: five-year-old season On 10 March 2019 Al Ain made his first appearance as a five-year-old in the Grade 2 Kinko Sho over 2000 metres at Chukyo Racecourse and came home fifth of the