Hotstepper makes Saeed Shah proud 
By True Blue

Mumbai
February 3, 2007

The patience shown by veteran Saeed Shah in holding back Hotstepper precisely for two months after his debut paid rich dividends. He had his charge well-tuned before he sent him out on the racetrack for the second time this season. Shah had the gratification of winning the Breeders' Produce Stakes (Gr.3) after the dark bay colt put in yet another fiery burst to win the coveted title.

Hotstepper (Glory of Dancer-Flying Home) had won narrowly on debut and the finish on Saturday was quite identical. Second favourite Star of China got straight down to business from the barriers and almost made it before Avec Plaisir got at her throat at which point both Hotstepper and favourite Alvarita entered the scene. Jockey Y. S. Srinath's power- packed riding helped Hotstepper overwhelm Avec Plaisir and then thwart the challenge of Alvarita. Assert The Right meanwhile got his act together but could only deny Avec Plaisir the third berth. Star of China was not exactly a spent force but she didn't have the muscle that could carry her through the seven-furlong journey after setting a blistering pace. Star of China met a slight interference before ending a close fifth and she definitely lives to fight for another day.

Although nothing seemed fishy about his riding or his intentions, C. Rajendra's efforts astride both Czarina and Alvarita lacked his characteristic artistry in the saddle.

K. P. G. Appu was unable to fulfil his initial engagements as his flight from Bangalore got delayed and Rajendra got an opportunity to ride Czarina, the unbeaten filly from Imtiaz Sait's yard but inflicted a blot on her record. Czarina has been a somewhat difficult filly to handle no doubt but having ridden her in Pune, Rajendra should have known well that asking too much of her in the longish Mahalaxmi straight could prove to be suicidal. Sadly Czarina tasted defeat exactly for the same reasons.

Giacosa called the early shots with Czarina surprisingly lying in the rear and a little further behind was Dynasty. Niall McCullagh astride the Pesi Shroff saddled Dynasty (Conquering Hero-Scossa) made up for the filly's lack of initial speed by driving her full force and skirting the entire field as he marked the leader Giacosa. Dynasty was in full flow and it was not long before Giacosa capitulated. Czarina was alerted by Rajendra at the turn but despite all his hard work Imtiaz's ward couldn't catch Dynasty and was forced to play second fiddle ahead of the weakening Giacosa. Shyboy rallied late to edge out Forces of Destiny from the judge's frame.

Rajendra's first of the two successes he had during the day came when Aqua Glow (Major Impact-Mosaic) proved far too superior for his rivals in the curtain raiser. Favourite Desert Dust led all the way and brought the six-horse field into the home stretch after which Aqua Glow went sailing into the lead. Imtiaz's protege found no hurdles on his way to his maiden victory. B. Prakash aboard Allanridge took refuge towards the inner rails in an attempt to avoid the limelight and was successful in doing so by finishing fifth.

Favourite Oyster Pearl (Don't Forget Me-Quality Exchange) was the other winner booted home by Rajendra. The Shiraz Sunderji trained bay created a flutter with his sluggishness at the start. But Oyster Pearl had enough power to gather steam when Rajendra started brushing him up and literally devoured ground to prevent the devastation that could have been by Flames of Fire's victory. Dancing Diva was prominent and had the lead momentarily but failed to accelerate. Capriani dragged herself to be in the money ahead of Lago Medio. Mind you that just seven-lengths separated the winner from the tenth horse and those who didn't finish in the first four were, as such, not disgraced in this defeat.

The half-money favourite Reflected Glory (China Visit-Allaire) caused no anxiety for her supporters as Prakash preferred to take the wider route to avoid any possible traffic hazards. S. Ganapathy's charge took toll of Spiritual Hymn easily and stayed clear of Pillatus, who ran into a wall of horses forcing Y. S. Srinath to switch lanes. Reflected Glory was home and dry before Pillatus could make any impact.

C. D. Katrak trained Priapus (Storm Trooper-Placid) made full amends for his earlier defeat when Malesh Narredu curbed his impatience and didn't commit the mistake of showing early daylight to his mount twice. The even-money favourite ranged along side leader Mischief In His Eyes opposite the grand stands and drew away from Star of the Season and Nanjing.

Mr Majestic ((Hymn-Thundering Bay) from Magansingh Jodha's stable was hard-ridden by Dashrath Singh as he kept both Sara Jahan and Andalusia at bay. Return of the King lacked proper assistance in the saddle but for which he performed much better than finishing fourth. Master of the Game, Hisham and Magical Music were involved in a scuffle in the initial stages of the race which affected their performance badly especially that of the last named. All the three horses are capable redeeming their honour.

Gold Craze (Conquering Hero-Angel Face) with K. Deepesh in saddle recorded a
stunning upset after the exit of two fancied horses from the fray, Mazan and Raiba. The filly fought hard with Tearaway and succeeded in warding her off. Surmount ended a game third and can improve on this run.

Iqbal Nathani owned and Rehanullah Khan trained Wall Street (Glory of Dancer-Shingle Path) was piloted by Suraj Narredu to a narrow victory over the late-finishing favourite Asiatique in the concluding event. Wall Street chased Rivaaz and Pine Crest into the straight and surged ahead. Meanwhile Pesi Shroff's candidate Asiatique was seen gathering momentum but failed to catch the winner.

The victory of Wall Street was not gained without its share of controversy. It is officially reported that the RWITC Stipes have initiated an enquiry into the running of Asiatique at the behest of its owner Dr Vijay Mallya.