Jockeys get ready to race at the Baghdad Equestrian Club, where businessmen, tribal sheiks and working-class Iraqis rub shoulders. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
A jockey inspects his horse at the Baghdad Equestrian Club. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
Fans fill the stands at the Baghdad racetrack. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
Iraqis are coming to the races again in large numbers after attendance had dwindled during the violence following the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
People gather around the betting booth at the equestrian club, which is turning a profit. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
