Followers of form pay a heavy price for neglecting Persian Lord's chances
By Usman Rangila

Mumbai
May 8, 2004

Had it not been for the friendly contribution of several professionals who are always at hand to help the club in its hour of crisis, the curtains would’ve probably come down on the current Mumbai racing season this week itself. However, the RWITC handicapper got into his act once again after the club-friendly trainers made resources available to him. A forgettable card of six, starting at 4.15 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, then took shape. Punters burnt their fingers as some horses neglected in the betting ring played spoilsport. Yogender Singh was probably the happiest man on the racecourse as he went on to score a popular treble.

Although the minimum required number of horses in a handicap race is six, the norms were put aside and the Sure Shot Plate with just five runners was allowed to pass. As the betting operations began for the first race, the flow of money changed directions quite often to leave the punters in a confused state of mind. The nine-year-old gelding Only For Don, who is owned and trained by Hormuz Antia, registered his second straight victory with Latest News, Akash and Forever Sunshine, the three speedy customers in this race, unable to match the strides with the Yogender Singh-steered winner. Forever Sunshine ran a game second ahead of Long John while Akash ran disappointingly and was kept company by Latest News.

Ivor Fernandes-saddled Everlasting Joy was the biggest flop of the day. Backed to then exclusion of her five rivals, three of which belonged to same connections, Everlasting Joy found the untrustworthy Axelle a thorn in her path. Axelle, who is bred as half-sister to Top Gun, had proved to be an expensive failure in her last week’s outing but seemed to have relished the extended mile trip and consequently gave a thrashing to her five rivals. Everlasting Joy failed to keep a straight course when Yogender applied pressure but it hardly mattered as Axelle was simply beyond everybody’s reach once Pradeep Chouhan changed gears astride the Sanjay Kolse nursed filly.

Amjad Khan-trained mare Tafeta gave Yogender his second winner of the day. Tafeta ran in close attendance of Camikara and Serendipity, who was sluggishly out from the gates, and pounced upon the duo opposite the grand stand. The winner sailed away for a comfortable win over the late finishing Grease Lightning who deprived Camikara the runner-up slot. Soon afterwards Yogender piloted Cakravana to an emphatic win over Oh God and All The Go. Although this was his first appearance on the Mahalaxmi tracks, Cakravana, who hails from Mahroze Irani’s yard, received enthusiastic support in the betting arena. Yogender was a picture of confidence in the saddle atop Cakravana as he drove him relentlessly in the straight and caught hold of both Oh God and Action Zone, who were busy settling the dispute among themselves. All The Go flashed on to the scene late but apart from denying Oh God the third berth, she could hardly cause any damage.

Faisal Abbas’ candidate Persian Lord made the followers of form pay a heavy price for ignoring his chances in the Supervite Trophy, the feature of the day’s card, though the blame does not lie entirely on them. Persian Lord, subsequent to his earlier success, had been slowly off from the gate twice and this may’ve led them to sacrifice his chances. Another important thing that influenced the betting trend was the amount of money coming the way of Destination Dubai, who was being touted as a virtual certainty of the day. After taking a level jump and being in close attendance of the early leaders, Persian Lord surged ahead to make this venture a profitable one for his connections. Destination Dubai didn’t even flatter for a moment and had to be content running third behind Castle Beauty. The victory of Adam’s Ambition in the last race added to the misery of the punters.

Though Hanut Singh’s ward looked a picture in the paddock-parade, Adam’s Ambition had few supporters in the betting ring. The betting concentrated largely on Saphire Princess, So Shocking and Victory Queen. Except for Saphire Princess, who found her rhythm late, the other two contenders were not involved in the finish. Adam’s Ambition, with Harish in the saddle, took charge of the running from the word go and held on gallantly by warding off the threat posed by Saphire Princess in the closing stages of the race. Sweet Success ended a tame third ahead.