Placed on the
bottom of the scale and very little to beat in the field of six,
Top Gun nearly faltered when Green Paradise refused to give up
the lead she wrest from Days of Glory at the top of the home
straight. Rising to the occasion, Aslam Kader gave an
awe-inspiring ride to the son of Alhijaz and succeeded in
humbling Green Paradise precisely in the last couple of strides.
The verdict would flatter the runner-up but it was evident that
the scurry was a bit too sharp for Top Gun. The property of the
Sunil Jhangiani family, who are sporting owners to the core, has
not peaked as yet and his future holds promise. Though it must
be mentioned that Top Gun has his task cut out when he runs in
the Astonish Trophy on January 13.
The other
brilliant performance of the day came from the four-year-old
filly Victory March (Portroe-Pleasant Melody) who stamped her
authority on the field when winning the H. R. Shantidas Trophy
in fluent style. Fears that she would not be able to concede
15kg to the Placerville-progeny Aureus proved unfounded in the
end.
Victory March
was prominent in the vanguard after C. Rajendra settled her
towards the rails but when the race took a serious turn, the
filly was a trifle reluctant to put her best foot forward. The
superficial injuries she suffered during the mishap at the start
of the last Pune season were, probably, still haunting Victory
March. And that could be the reason why she was hesitant to
stretch out when she found company in the form of Aureus and
Amazing Dream on her outside. However, the moment Rajendra
switched lanes opposite the stands, Victory March literally flew
towards her destination. This was the second consecutive win of
Victory March after being entrusted to trainer Imtiaz Sait by
her owners Mr & Mrs Shapoor Mistry and the twin-brothers Ram
& Raj Shroff.
The first crop
Diffident, the new stallion standing at the Poonawalla Stud
Farms, logged in another success when Star Councillor gave a
gutsy performance on debut to thwart Mandalay Bay close home.
The stylish bay son of Star Role sent out in top fettle by
Dallas Todywalla, responded gallantly to jockey B. Prakash’s
call when challenged by Mandalay Bay. Favourite Absolute
Dominance with Mark Gallagher in the saddle, failed to live up
to the promise shown on his debut and ended a tame third.
However,
Gallagher did make amends for Shiraz Sunderji atop Destiny
Calling. Gallagher’s unfailing sense of horsemanship worked in
his favour. When going in chase of leader Dazzling Gold in the
straight, the Irishman ensured that both Dhanasri and Soviet
Fire did not get the first march over him. By the time Dhanasri
and Soviet Fire could recover, Destiny Calling was safely home.
Dazzling Gold, after losing ground at the start, was brushed up
by Niall McCullagh only to flatter and deceive his supporters.
Indeed the
defeat of Dazzling Gold was a setback for trainer Bezan Chenoy
but solace was not too far off. Both Adam’s Touch and Green
Star returned triumphant to dilute Bezan’s anguish. C. Lemaire
gave a fine display astride Adam’s Touch to keep Courtesan at
bay. As if to compensate for his failure on Dazzling Gold,
McCullagh gave brilliant support to wayward Green Star on her
way to her maiden victory.
Salt Lake just
managed to scrape through as Pesi Shroff outwitted both Quick
Decision and Cacophony. The latter was unlucky to have caught in
a traffic snarl but for which she would definitely turned the
tables on her conqueror. A similar finish at the start of the
day saw Baba’s Gift gain an overdue victory in the hands of C.
Ruzaan. Runner-up Clever Talk found the weight a stopper while
favourite Anchors Aweigh was clearly short of a run. Outsider
Begonia took toll of on-money favourite Devasva who refused to
keep a straight course when it mattered most. Mallesh Narredu
left no stoned unturned to get Devasva on an even keel but all
he got in return were cramps that prevented him from fulfilling
his other riding engagements.