Big Orange still has time to get right for the Dubai Gold Cup on Saturday, but his week hasn't gotten off to a great start.

Out on the Meydan training track Monday morning, Big Orange got upset by something shortly after coming off the horse path and onto the Tapeta oval, and despite the exhortions of his rider, he refused to go forward. Backward, yes, but forward, no. Big Orange appeared to be staring at something down the back-straight and didn't like what he saw. Finally, an outrider came to help, and after several minutes more, Big Orange consented to cantering along with the pony a few paths to his inside.

Not a huge deal, but after returning to the quarantine facility, Big Orange tied up, trainer Michael Bell told the Racing Post. Tying up, spurred by some metabolic imbalance, is like having a massive muscle cramp, and it's a fairly common issue in racehorses. Bell said Monday he guessed Big Orange would be back to training Tuesday, but Big Orange did not, in the end, make a reappearance at the training track, according to a representative of the International Racing Bureau, which organizes travel and daily logistics at Meydan for European shippers.

It's a situation worth monitoring since Big Orange could be one of the main players in the two-mile Gold Cup. He was fourth in the race last year after rain turned the grass softer than he prefers, and a close second in 2016 while racing on good ground. Big Orange defeated the mighty Order of St. George last summer in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot.