Bourbon King (Diffident-Queen Ann)

Bourbon King stands tall
By Sharan Kumar

Bangalore
Jun 15, 2007

Ganapathy trained Bourbon King stands tall in the big field that is in fray for the Gr. 1 Colts Trial Stakes, the second classic of the Bangalore Summer Season. The stake money that is on offer almost matches that offered for the Gr.1 Indian Turf Invitation Cup and as such, it is no surprise that the fields for the Summer Classics have been quite substantial this year as there has been steep rise in the level of stakes for all categories of races.

Bourbon King who has been on the upgrade ever since he made his debut last winter, may not have been the stable’s classic hopeful when the two-year olds were being assessed before the start of the last winter season when the two-year olds made their debut. But the son of Diffident possibly surpassed all expectations by winning his second outing and then beating Woman On Top in his second essay as a lesser fancied horse in a sensational timing. This is what made him out to be something special and he proved the assessment right by winning the Gr. 1 Poonawalla Breeders’ Multi-Million in taking style, getting the better of Alvarita, the subsequent winner of the Gr. 1 Fillies Trial Stakes and stablemate Our Excellence who could be the stable’s hope for the Derby. Bourbon King has not looked back since then and has gone on from strength to strength. He won his lead up race for this classic, with a smashing win in the Gr. 2 Juvenile Million earlier in the season. He has done everything right and has been blazing the track and it is hard to visualize anyone toppling him in this richly endowed classic.

Bourbon King is by Diffident out of Queen Ann. The latter is stoutly bred to stay and as such, Bourbon King who is blessed with a turn of foot and an ability to stay the grueling trips has all the makings of becoming the star of the season. There is no doubt as to why he cannot extend his winning streak even over trips longer than a mile given his class and consistency.

The only possible threat for Bourbon King could from none other than stablemate Badge of Gold, the highly talented son of Razeen. Badge of Gold is possibly the best representative of his famous sire among his contemporaries. Badge of Gold has four straight wins to his credit including in the highest class over a mile without raising a sweat. This full brother to the Indian Oaks winning Romantic Liaison is an exciting prospect and if given the right opportunities, he will excel.

Pesi Shroff thinks highly of Elusive Study, the progeny of the now deceased Elusive Pimpernel. Elusive Study went down in a handicap race in his last outing but the trainer thinks that his ward needed that run and that he would be a tough nut to crack if ridden in restraint. On the last occasion, jockey C Alford went start to finish and the horse floundered in the closing stages of the race. It remains to be seen if Elusive Study is as good as the trainer’s expectations.

Hyderabad challenger Vijayraaj came to Bangalore, with the connections expecting a great deal. However, Vijayraaj hasn’t lived up to the hype and his run in the Gr. 2 Juvenile Million was too poor for comfort. His trainer Vittal Deshmukh said that he is pretty disappointed with his ward’s performance but feels that the son of Black Cash will bounce back.

Elusive Study (Elusive Pimpernel-Classic Study)

Among the other runners in the fray, Royal Ambassador who has three wins to his credit is a reasonable performer though it remains to be seen how he will tackle the mile long trip. Royal Ambassador narrowly went down to Bourbon King in his debut run as a two-year old but since then, has won three races. His run in the Poonawalla Million needs to be discounted as he ran wide and went out at the final bend. His last win over a sprint was impressive and he did not show that tendency which is a good sign.

Hotstepper who won the Gr. 2 Breeders Produce Stakes at the expense of Alvarita at Mumbai, Western Command and Swift Fire are all capable horses but they may find the fancied runners too hot to handle.