St Catz (Royal Kingdom – Irish Glitter) put up a clinical show and walked away with the honours in the much touted St Catz Vs Botswana duel. The race unfolded true to expectations as at the business end, the ‘jodi’ (duo) had beaten the rest comprehensively. Moon Flower put up wee bit of resistance before accepting the inevitable, as she led the field from the start and stayed ahead until midway up the straight.

St Catz travelled well and jockey Neeraj Rawal was just coasting along at the turn. Botswana was a shade slow taking the jump and tailed the field for the first three furlongs, but was always within reach of the bunch in front. She improved to be fourth as they negotiated the final turn.

The start of the mile race was from the back stretch and not the usual mile chute. Races over seven furlongs and over the mile will start from the back-stretch for the next few weeks as the chute has been freshly re-laid after some ground work had taken place recently. It would take a couple of weeks before the starting gates are restored to the chute and the more important races of the season will take off from the original starting point by around mid-December.

Moon Flower was labouring to stay in contention when St Catz moved alongside, still on a tight rein. Botswana had some catching up to do. Living The Dream was with them but not gaining at all. St Catz stole a march coming into the final furlong and even a bold late bid from Botswana was not enough to beat St Catz. Botswana was at a disadvantage after her tardy start but made up considerable ground in the final stages of the race. She lost by merely a length and this reversal can be shrugged off. St Catz lived up to the expectations and will be prepared more extensively for the Guineas in December.

Orito (Major Impact – Radiant) scored a thumping victory befitting a sizzling hot favourite to win the JV Shukla – Ashwamitra Trophy. Star of Killarney was quick to shoot into the lead. Orito too was sent to the front tagging along just behind the leader. Snow Blaze, Daffodils, Angels Pursuit compiled the front bunch; Prince of Troy was further behind until they straightened for home. Star of Killarney kicked on for a while longer but soon Orito came menacingly and zipped past. Srinath used the whalebone and in a trice, Orito sped ahead opening up a considerable gap. He finally won pulling up. Prince of Troy came from way behind to beat the rest and easily annex the runner-up slot. Angels Pursuit ended a decent third.

The judge had originally declared Snow Blaze and Lord of Killarney joint fourth after they dead-heated, however, following a steward’s enquiry, the latter was relegated to fifth for infringement within the final furlong.

Another result was altered after the race when Walking Tall, the original winner of the Star Admiral Plate was disqualified. The homestretch, particularly the final 300 meters saw leads changing rapidly and the scramble for the winning post was ferocious. Towering High brought the field homewards and was fighting hard to keep a bunch of horses at bay. Arabian Champ came to the fore with a burst was seeking to pull off an encore. Hammerhead, the prime favourite was pushing between them and put his nose in front momentarily. As the trio was jostling about, Walking Tall picked up momentum and accelerated extremely well and had he maintained a straight course, there was little doubt he would win comfortably. However, at a crucial stage approaching the winning post, Joy Chinoy could not arrest the inward drift as Walking Tall nearly bulldozed those challenging him and caused a dramatic chain reaction. The Stewards reviewed the race and observed that all those on the inside, namely, Arabian Champ, Hammerhead, Angels Pursuit and even Distinguished were all hampered by this sudden move. Dashrath Singh, who partnered Hammerhead, lodged an objection as well. The outcome of the Stewards enquiry was not unexpected. Walking Tall was disqualified.

Meanwhile, when all the commotion was unfolding, Macho Uno put in a sustained gallop and was noticed coming into the final furlong. He was on the wider outside, hence had a clear run. He finished on fastest and fell just short of Walking Tall at the post. Macho Uno’s was a brilliant effort and he deservedly got the race. Walking Tall had only himself to blame for squandering away his victorious run.

Magical Mantra (Hymn – Shabanaka) set the trend for the day which saw a number of firm favourites tumble. Sound of River was the first casualty. Star of Zoltan set the pace and was followed by Sound of River and Red Sensation keeping one another company, Magical Mantra preferred to race in the rear. Sound of River got past the leader once in the straight however, Magical mantra did not allow him to pull away. Jockey CS Jodha set Magical Mantra alight and the Magan Singh ward stormed past the favourite to romp home in style. Sound of River lost out to a competitor who was carrying a whopping 11 kgs lesser. On that count, Sound of River ought to be given another chance.

Trainer SS Shah had to go through the agony of another of his charges going down in the very next race, this time by a whisker. The entire field was sewn-up together as they took to turn and soon spread out for a clear passage. Watch Out was losing her grip on the lead as a crowd of horses were gaining on her at a fast clip. Wells Fargo was literally forcing her out and Adventurer too looked in serious business. Rajdoot appeared out of the blue and was looking good to land the spoils until Young Offender unlocked his wings. He flew past the rest and made a stronger bid in the final fifty to pip Rajdoot on the post. Baria couldn’t have timed his finish better!

Pound Foolish (Kalasini – Moneypenny) made it the third outsider in a row and had the followers of favourites perspiring. Arabian Eagle looked optimistic entering the straight with a cushion of about two lengths and was travelling well too. Dancing Money started to apply pressure and Arabian Eagle could not sustain it the tussle. Just when it looked Dancing Money would make her supporters dance, Pound Foolish quickened and how! The MK Jadhav trainee, under a new owner, galloped on resolutely to end the issue meters away from the winning post. Dancing Money ended a shaken second while Arabian Eagle settled for the third spot. Kite Runner who was detached last and was nowhere prominent on the screen, ran the width of the track, yet surfaced to peg back Blau Himmel for a place in the frame.

King Julien (Placerville – Star Spangled) and Rancho had the support divided among them and true to that trend took the top two positions between them. King Julien hit the front and shot away from the rest and by the time they skirted the final turn King Julien had built a massive lead. Rancho was taking it easy on his first run and loafed a bit at the start to tail the field of six.

King Julien ruled the straight and by the time Rancho realised what he was supposed to do, King Julien had sealed the issue. Rancho did make up a lot of deficit and narrowed the final margin of victory by a lot. Rancho is best described as the equine equal to famed wrestler – the great Khali. The hunk of a horse would surely have filled his slot in the starting stalls. He surely would prefer the trip and should be watched in his next outing.

That’s My Master (Sussex – Khorkina) ended the day emerging as another favourite vanquisher just as was the trend at the start of the day. Pronto Star took a lot of money down with him as he continued to disappoint. Stuntacular and Enchanted escorted the field homeward and duly bowed out once in the straight. That’s My Master did not lose any time in improving from the third position to take charge approaching the distance post. Once in the lead, he galloped on with solid determination and held his ground even as Saddlers Rule and Eye of the Storm challenged him seriously. Eye of the Storm in particular came from a long way back to run a good second pegging back Saddlers Rule who ran a good race as well. Pronto Star looked in contention for a very brief while before he was passed by both Saddlers Rule and Eye of the Storm.

For the professionals, trainer MK Jadhav and jockey CS Jodha scored a double each.