Zayat Stables

Ahmed Zayat, who has residences in New Jersey, New York, London, and Egypt, made his fortune when he privatized Al Ahram Beverages Company and turned it into the largest beverage manufacturer and distributor in the Middle East. He then sold the company to Heineken International. Zayat is the largest shareholder in Misr Glass Manufacturing, the largest manufacturer of glass containers in Egypt.

Zayat’s business acumen allowed him to get involved with Thoroughbreds at the highest level. One of his best sprinters, Justin Phillip, has been chasing a Grade 1 stakes score for most of his career. As a four-year-old in 2012, he finished second by a neck to Poseidon’s Warrior in the Alfred G. Vanderbilt Stakes. This year, he got the job done, winning the Vanderbilt by two lengths.

The five-year-old First Samurai horse has won or placed in 21 of 31 starts and has earned in excess of $1.2 million, and is one of many Grade 1 winners for Zayat. Others include Bodemeister, second in both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes, who won the Arkansas Derby; Wood Memorial Stakes winner Eskendereya; Belmont Stakes runner-up Paynter, first in last year’s Haskell Invitational; Pioneerof the Nile, who won the CashCall Futurity and the Santa Anita Derby; and Zensational, a winner at the top level three times.