S. Ganapathy’s ward was however was made to sweat hard by runner-up
Berlioz and Parthenon, who were separated by three-parts of a length and
neck from the winner respectively. A length further away ended Full
Speed, a new entrant in Pesi Shroff’s fold. However the winner's
achievement has to be seen in the light of the fact that he was
conceding weight to all his rivals.
Despite Southern Regent’s classic conquests, punters were enamoured by
Berlioz. Consequently, mega bucks flowed abundantly in the direction of
last year’s Indian 2000 Guineas winner.
Simply Supreme played the role of pacemaker to perfection, his act
lasting till heads turned for home. Berlioz was put in top gear at
this juncture by Mallesh Narredu and the bay son of Innocent Pleasures
tried to surge ahead but Parthenon kept snapping at his heels. K.P.G.
Appu ridden Parthenon made a last ditch attempt closer home and gained
an upper hand over Berlioz for one fleeting moment. B. Prakash meanwhile
got Southern Regent to uncoil a
stupendous run that put paid to the hopes of Berlioz. The limitations of
Parthenon’s stamina were established despite his valiant bid which
fetched Rashid Byramji’s protégé the third spot. Full Speed completed
the frame after arriving late on the scene but his first visit to the
Mahalaxmi track was good enough to fuel hopes of a better performance
later. Southern Regent is by far the best middle distance horse at the
moment adding this plum to the Indian Derby and Invitation Cup
victories.
The Ganapathy-Prakash duo was earlier associated with the success of
Star Hopeful (Razeen-Habitizia), who received a major scare from
owner-mate Star Millionaire, ridden by Frenchman Samuel Fargeat. The
winner took charge of the running from the on-money favourite Star of
the Season, who seemed to be in distress, at the turn. Star Millionaire
soon joined him and a fierce battle ensued.
Prakash held his nerve and prevailed over his adversary. It was very
difficult to decide at the end of the race whether it was the better
horse or the better jockey who decided the issue. Star of the Season
joined the ever-growing list of bleeders from Cooji Katrak’s yard, which
explains, to a certain extent, the favourite’s poor show.
Before guiding a winning brace, Prakash earned the wrath of both the
punters and the Stewards. He was hauled up for allegedly being soft on
the Dallas Todywalla nursed maiden filly Oratorio. The dramatic shift in
the betting market against Oratorio seemed to have given the game away.
Oratorio graced the wrong end of the field throughout and finished a
forgettable sixth. Nina Lalvani’s Cincinnati (Greensmith-La
Bonne Vie) seized this opportunity to strike it rich. Some smart money was
wagered on Cincinnati, who responded beautifully to the urgings of C.Alford. Another horse that attracted sustained betting was Rare Look. He was a trifle in
late in finding his rhythm and had to be content with the second berth
ahead of Falaknuma.
The loss of Star of the Season failed to prove a dampener for the
Khushroo Dhunjibhoy camp, which picked up two races swiftly and another
at the end of the day.
Vinayak saddled dark bay gelding Rosenkavalier (Commendable-Dam I’m
Gorgeous) made short work of his twelve rivals as he gathered momentum
in the straight. Favourite Prince of Hearts proved no match for the
winner and ultimately was edged out by Eva for the runner-up position.
Later, the dark bay filly Giacosa (Placerville-Puzla) made a stunning
debut to upset the fancied duo Diabolical and Chagall. This filly from
Katrak’s barns ran with gay abandon as the gates opened for the
Mahalaxmi Juvenile Million. The sprightly filly gave no anxious moments
to her saddle partner P. Kamlesh, and stayed beyond the reach of her rivals. Andreas ran on to finish fourth.
Tartarus (Tecorno-Kildangan), who was a 10 to 9 on favourite on the
opening day of this season and managed to beat just two horses in a
field of fourteen, was a different specimen altogether after Mahroze
Irani decided to do away with the blinkers on the filly. Entrusted to
Niall McCullagh on this occasion, Tartarus sailed away for an effortless
victory over Indian Fashion and Czai.
The performance of Shiraz Sunderji saddled Oyster Cove (Royal Kingdom-Gumbaru
Etsu) in the Ranjit Bhat Memorial Trophy came as a revelation. This
horse had finished seventh as piping-hot favourite when ridden by C.
Rajendra just ten days back in the lower class. Without disputing the
fact that he’d received interference last time out, Oyster Cove with
Nirmal Jodha on board was seen toying with his opponents on this
occasion. Adam’s Star and the rest kept trying in vain to catch the
winner but ended up chasing his shadow. There is a unanimous view among
the racegoers that this is a fit case for investigation for the Stipes.
Live Legend was in a predicament identical to that of Oyster Cove when
he tasted defeat. C.Rajendra once again found himself in all sorts of
problems in the home stretch. Live Legend fell back from a striking
position to be last in the field of nine. Before this ride could turn
into another
disastrous engagement for Rajendra, the horses racing ahead of Live
Legend split offering him a heaven-sent opportunity to salvage the
situation. Live Legend (Razeen-Husun) went piercing through the gap and
was home and dry before Proteus could prove a headache.
