Mansoor Shah digs into the pot of gold once again with Tough Warrior 
By Usman Rangila

Pune
Oct 30, 2004

Kept away from competitive racing for nearly two-and-a-half months on being humbled by Decent Proposal over a mile-and-a-quarter trip on Independence Day, Tough Warrior slammed his rivals in the Track Lightning Trophy over a truncated journey this weekend. Tough Warrior has been raced sparingly by his master Mansoor Shah since his relocation from Bangalore last year and has proved to be nothing less than a pot of gold for his connections.

The credit of the rich dividends paid by Tough Warrior goes entirely to the painstaking work of Mansoor Shah, who consciously minimised the risk of defeat when chalking out his strict regimen. The dark bay son of Razeen out of Ampula reeled off three wins in a row in Western India including two on successive days during the Invitation Cup weekend at Mahalaxmi. Tough Warrior took control of the running when the starter’s flag came down and at no stage was he headed by any of the other contenders. Although Tough Warrior veered out when P. Kamlesh applied pressure to keep him going in the straight, the resilience of the five-year-old gelding paled the efforts of his rivals. Simply Red once again arrived late on the scene to make any difference to the final outcome. Much was expected from Dazzling Queen but weight proved to be a stopper and the filly was forced to share the third slot with Fantastic Knight.

Regius (P Kamlesh up), winner of the P A Bear Plate

Kamlesh was earlier associated with the maiden success of Regius (Placerville-Hall of Honour), who outwitted her nearest rival Rosemount nearer home. Pesi Shroff astride Rosemount had the upper hand from the bend onwards but Regius came with a smooth run to notch her first career win.

Daughterofcharity appeared on the Pune racetrack during the opening week of the season when she suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of Striking Beauty. She licked her wounds during the meantime and came rejuvenated for her final showdown of this season. The filly trained by ex-jockey S. M. Johnson redeemed her lost pride with a gratifying win in Class III. The speedy daughter of Greensmith out of Dancing Designs was unruffled when both Fire Dancer and Keytothevaults disputed the early lead with her. Spurning all efforts of this duo to collar her, the favourite, who was a rage among the moneybags, sprinted away magnificently under the assistance of Suraj Narredu for a comfortable win.

Live Legend made mincemeat of his Class IV rivals to let know the racing world why schooler Imtiaz Sait thinks very highly of him. This Razeen offspring out of Husun lay unconcerned in the mid-bunch till the final turn and stormed into the lead as the heads turned for home for a resounding victory. Ballybunnion, Annunciation and Reasoning were left fighting for the minor places in the end.

The fall he suffered two weeks back had not dampened the spirits of apprentice Towfeeq Shaikh and he celebrated his return to the saddle with a fine double. He first steered the Saeed Shah-trained Courageous to upset a couple of fancied runners including Philosopher, who finished a tame third behind Partner Perfect and a neck ahead of the late-finishing Celestial Fantasy. Later in the day, Towfeeq gave a confident ride to the Sorab Jilla-saddled Ballynahinch. The daughter of Mischevious Music out of Zing Thing essayed a brilliant run down the straight and won running away from the field. Favourite Starlite ran a pathetic fourth while Decameron faded out of contention after calling the early shots. 

R. K. Mahesh, who was cooling his heels on the sidelines due to a racing offence, was quickly into the groove. He partnered the neglected All The Go (Excalibur’s Lake-Astina) for a surprise victory in the concluding event. The filly now nurtured by Sandeep Mangalorkar overwhelmed Twin Power as the final journey began and went to score untroubled. A lot of money wagered on Pinotage, who was running after a year, went down the drain as there was some enthusiastism for the filly hailing from Subhag Singh’s yard. The odds against Pinotage plummeted after inside information regarding her "rosy" chances seeped into the betting ring. There were a lot of drooping shoulders and long faces as Pinotage was seen struggling in the rear throughout. For some, the sheer presence of Pesi Shroff in the saddle atop Pinotage was an irresistible charm on which they hoped to hitch a piggyback ride.

Daughterofcharity (Suraj Narredu up), winner of the Mansab Plate

Live Legend (Merchant up), winner of the Nijinsky Trophy

Ballynahinch (T R Shaikh up), winner Politely Please Plate

Tough Warrior (P Kamlesh up), the winner Track Lightning Trophy.

All The Go (R K Mahesh up), winner of the Midnight Cowboy Plate