A dull and lacklustre card of eight events was framed for Saturday's racing at Bangalore, with The Hoysala Cup being accorded the pride of place as the day's feature. It was a sprint race for horses in Class II, and was split into two divisions. Trainer Darius Byramji had the distinction of winning both the races with favourites Alacrity and Ticket To Ride, and by doing so, giving some respite to the hapless punters who were at the receiving end for most of the afternoon. Alacrity was known to be an outstanding runner as he came into this race with good credentials. He had run behind Lady Duff and Becket in his two starts this season.

The fact that Lady Duff won another race in the highest class and Becket won The Poonawalla Bangalore Derby was reason enough for him to start as the shortest priced runner in Saturday's race card. Another reason for this was the fact that his opponents looked extremely mediocre. It was difficult to identify a clear second favourite in this race. Imran Chisty had problems in holding Alacrity in the early stages of the race, and not wanting to fight him, the young man chose to ease him into an early lead. The speedy horse set his own pace while making every post a winning one. He was chased all the time by Superb Style, who got tired at the end of it all to get pipped by Ready To Mingle for the second spot.

This completed a nice treble for Imran Chisty, who had already won with Wynn and Jamaican Bolt. Both these horses had come with strong runs in their respective races, and won near the final post. Chasing runaway Sweet Timer till the last furlong, Wynn came with giant strides and made an impressive start to his racing career. The well-bred Wynn had apparently suffered from some initial problems, as this was his maiden run. Youre Chilubuli and Stormy Affair made rapid progress from the rear to fill rest of the frame. The win astride Jamaican Bolt was more exciting. With a lot of money flowing in the direction of Misty Moonlight and Sunny Spell, the odds against Jamaican Bolt rose within a short period of time. The race was run in close order, as Carnival Of Joy showed the way to Misty Moonlight and Mercutio as the runners entered the final furlong.

Jamaican Bolt got caught behind them, and Imran had no option but to pull him on the wide outside. Despite losing precious time and valuable ground by this manoeuvre, the game galloper devoured ground and nailed Misty Moonlight near the winning post. The winner was running for the first time in the charge of trainer Babu Rao. Mercutio ran on to take the third place. A small group of six youngsters accepted to run in The Narasimharaja Cup. Being a well endowed event, it normally sees a lot of classy juveniles vying for honours.

Saturday's field was led by Arjun Mangalorkar's Sky Train. This nice looking colt had won his first start in impressive fashion, and for this very reason, was conceding weight to most of his rivals. Sky Train was considered to be unbeatable, and was running at a very short price today. Imran Chisty's efforts to win another race with this horse came to nought, as Sky Train floundered under pressure. He was held up behind the front-running pair of Camorra and Make My Day before being shown daylight in the straight. The leading pair did not allow Sky Train to seize the initiative.

Even though the two of them drifted out in the final furlong, Camorra and Make My Day managed to finish ahead of the favourite. Chris Hayes rode powerfully at the end to keep the De Souza ridden Make My Day at bay. The winner is a nice specimen and can be expected to improve hereafter. However, Sylvester De Souza was associated with two other winners today. Donning the silks for his retained connections, the professional powered Ticket To Ride and Alpha Baby to smart victories. Ticket To Ride was always prominent behind Amar Prem till the home turn. He seized the initiative in the straight and rode strongly thereafter. The lead obtained at this stage proved to be decisive at the end. Suraj's mount Dream Park flew from the rear, but was marginally shy at the wire. Top-weighted Cayenne was prominent throughout the trip, but she wilted under the heavy impost and finished third.

The victory astride Alpha Baby was achieved with a late charge from the rear. Kingdomofdreams and Calypso Star were the early leaders in this race. Alpha Baby was seen improving all the time before she began her bid on the wide outside. The four year-old made light of her winning penalties while registering her third success of the season. Kingdomofdreams, who has been winless for most part of the past one year, had to settle for the second place ahead of a late rushing Advantage Logan. Jockey PS Chouhan began the day on a low before signing off in style. He was totally at sea while trying to rouse the Amit Caddy trained on-money favourite Give Me The Money in the day's opener. The horse had returned to Class B and looked capable of winning this sprint. Despite the jockey's frantic efforts, the favourite refused to move forward. He caved-in without a fight and made no impression on the frontrunners. This resuled in Black Splendour causing the biggest upset of the day. Similar efforts astride a heavily gambled Badda Rupaiyya paid richer dividends.

Apart from the fact that Badda Rupaiyya had been backed with gay abandon, there was little else to recommend his chances. Chouhan kept him in mid field, before essaying his challenge. Not finding enough room on the inside, he moved him towards the outer portion of the track. Badda Rupaiyya responded positively to his master's call, and came smoothly through the pack. He managed to retain his marginal lead ahead of a consistent Dark Horse. The winner was trained by Manohar.