Best Of The Blues noses out stable fancy
By Aalibaba (indiathoroughbreds@hotmail.com)

Kolkata
Feb 26, 2007

Best Of The Blues’ victory in the feature event, the Mayor’s Cup, was stunning but the Saturday afternoon also provided ample opportunities for punters to multiply their winnings. Six favourites, in the seven-event card, emerged victorious and most of them were generously priced in the betting ring.

Best Of The Blues (CP. Manasseh-up), a Daniel David-trained horse, was largely overlooked in view of the stable’s first jockey, Imran Chisty, opting for Mr Darcy. Ardelis, last winter’s top-rated youngster, was sharpened up for the sprint after faring poorly in the Classics and had tremendous support in the ring. The Vijay Singh-trainee, however, detested Malesh Narredu’s holding back tactics in the race and never raised a threatening gallop.

Equally surprising was Get Fresh’s front-running tactics. The Be Fresh mare likes to be ridden in a check. She is also known for her short-burst which jockey Neeraj Rawal had exploited to advantage in her previous start. Both, Get Fresh and Star Magic were, nevertheless, tired horses nearing the distance-post, when the race had taken a serious turn. As a result of this, Best Of The Blues and Mr Darcy got going and the former just about managed to nose-out the stable’s fancy.

Still, Chisty would have secured the verdict in the Stewards’ room had he objected against Manasseh for causing serious interference when Best Of The Blues bisected Get Fresh and Mr Darcy in the final 100 metres. Chisty chose not to do so for reasons best known to him.

Robin Corner’s Supreme Power was a medium of big gamble in the 1,200m Indian Air Force Cup. The horse duly obliged his backers with a pillar-to-post victory in the hands of Malesh.

Arythia was expected to be home and dry in the 1,400m B.K.Poddar Cup but Bhungard’s Elegant Road made the Royal Gladiator-Sarah Scadara filly sweat for victory. The Flitch colt, making his debut, dictated terms from the start till about 100m from home before surrendering to a fitter Arythia.

In the 1,600m Revival Handicap the Mumbai-migrant, Zeus, demonstrated his superior class after the five-year-old was given a lung opening run recently. Jockey Earnest Smith virtually got armchair-ride on the Richard Alford trained favourite who can score again.

Rosa Belle's, blood vessel burst caused a lot of anguish to her backers in the  Curtain Call Handicap. The filly raised hopes of victory till the distance-post but appeared to be in a distress as she came under pressure when challenged by Trainer H.S.Bath’s solidly fancied Going Starry and the lowlyweighted Avisholom.