When Richard Hughes doesn’t move a muscle, he creates a sensation! Only he could have provided an ‘armchair’ ride to victory atop universal fancy Ocean And Beyond. The manner of victory was subtle, yet powerful. The margin of victory was just about a length, but Richard ensured he had a lot of horse left unspent even in the final furlong. If this was a test run, his feedback would be exciting to all the well-wishers of O&B. The Second Frontier on course to the Indian Derby – The RR Ruia Gold Cup (GR2) was conquered without sweat; there was no question of blood! Macchupicchu packed a surprise by going for the early initiative and working up a steady pace at that.

Ocean And Beyond was relaxed in the fourth position and the rest were within touching distance of each other, Strategic Change being the one who had none behind. Ocean Admiral, the original pacemaker, took centre-stage past the half-way mark and brought the field homewards. Macchupicchu was making an effort to quicken after taking over from Ocean Admiral, when Hughes cruised alongside. Berlusconi too was showing keenness to throw his hat in. Unperturbed by the high activity around him, Richard Hughes had Ocean And Beyond travelling majestically between the two (challengers?). While Berlusconi was not gaining in the final furlong, Macchupicchu did not fade away. He did his bit but stayed with Ocean And Beyond (Kingsalsa – Sayuri) until the end. Ocean And Beyond won the Ruia Cup in superlative style. The burden of expectation now piles on him.

He clocked a decent timing of 2:03.22 as against the record timing of 2:01.15 clocked by the great Set Alight for this very race in March 2009. Ocean And Beyond has proved beyond doubt that the mile and a quarter bares his stamp. The manner of his victory does suggest that his ability over the extra distance (400 meters) for the Indian Derby need not be questioned! Ocean And Beyond was bred at the Equus Stud Farm. With this exaggerated ‘tight rein’ stretch run, Ocean And Beyond, if he could talk, would not hesitate to borrow the famous quote of the Boxing legend Mohammed Ali, “Catch me if you can!” Forest Flair (Placerville – Tide of Fortune) showcased his flair for speed as he forced his way to the fore to clinch The Club Med Million in a well-fought race with D’Artagnan.

D’Artagnan darted into the lead and had Pepe Junior, Forest Flair, Celestial Way and Arts following close behind. As they turned for home, D’Artagnan kicked on and Pepe Junior was also stubbornly tagging alongside. Forest Flair was stuck on the rails and McCullagh would have been anxious for a prolonged period - until the distance post – as both D’Artagnan and Pepe Junior were focused on the winning post ahead. The moment McCullagh found a narrow split opening in front of him, he seized the opportunity and shot through with Forest Flair and the Karthik-trained gelding surged ahead to snatch the verdict a stride or two from the winning post. While D’Artagnan was gallant in defeat, Pepe Junior surprised his younger rivals with a well-run third place.

Celestial Way lingered by and managed a place in the frame. The Sahaan Juvenile Multi-Million saw a minor casualty at the start as Crown Rule reportedly fell and was withdrawn. That did not in any way make things easy for the favourite Aidan who was coming into this race with an impressive victory behind him. Mountain Glory (Alnasr Alwasheek – Foretell) showed much improvement on his last start second over the same distance and utilized the weight advantage to the boot. Bolting out of the gates Mountain Glory soon hit the front and was well in control of the race even as they entered the straight. Hughes then stepped up the pace and left it for the others to catch up. Our Chieftain provided a game fight and this time Hughes had to use all his might to ward off a worthy challenge.

Aidan came on to the scene half-way down the straight but failed to produce that extra bid needed to force the issue. Incognito also made her presence at one stage, but didn’t quite look like troubling the ones in control. One other juvenile who was the centre of attraction was Black Magic Woman (Placerville – Magic Moment). The highly thought of filly had gone down tamely to Class Apart in Pune and had a reputation to redeem. She did just that and in no uncertain terms. Taking charge from Silk Cut soon on start, Black Magic Woman entered the straight with a steady momentum going. Jockey David Allan who carried half a kilo over the declared weight, had little to do as Black Magic Woman sped away mostly on her own knowing what as expected of her. Silk Cut tried hard to stay in the hunt but found the winner too good.

The rest have a lot of catching up to do. Camacho (Razeen – Gourgandine) kept his date with victory winning The Greater Mumbai Police Trophy in a splendid manner. Chasing his main threat Mia Stella who hardly proved to be that, Camacho shot into the lead on the bit and Hayes eased the Shroff gelding leisurely to finally run away with the race. Solor improved to finish a tame second. Forever Young (Diffident – Caractere) won The Ranjit V Bhat Memorial Gold Trophy, named after one of the most popular owners at the RWITC.

Squanderer, the legendary horse, was one of this man’s prized possessions. Forever Young settled quickly to chase Schnell in a fast-run race with the favourite Ares in close attendance. El Tropico found the weight a bit too much and failed to make an impact. Into the straight, Forever Young was quick to pass Schnell and increased the momentum in the final furlong. Dashrath Singh powered ahead and kept the Imtiaz ward going and pulled off a sensational victory. Ares was ridden out in his quest to make a race of it but failed to find the same acceleration as Forever Young. Tell Me More (Tirol – Ask Me All) won a thrilling and a hard-fought race with Dashrath Singh contributing well to the success. In one of the most closely contested finishes of the day, Tell Me More just about prevailed from Aston Martin who is fast earning the reputation of being the best horse to back for the second horse pool.

Gamba led the field and set up a genuine pace. Aston Martin was in box seat at the turn, and took over the running with a furlong and a half to go. Dashrath produced Tell Me More who had chosen to lie in fifth for most of this seven-furlong trip. When Dashrath asked him to accelerate, the five-year-old gelding responded gamely and after joining the issue at the furlong mark, was actually drawing away at the finish. Dashrath Singh is a lad with a bright future and is in sublime form. Aston Martin found one better yet again and it would be interesting how his trainer will get him to score. He is knocking on the door and each time the knock gets louder. Tzigane flattered to deceive but should pick up a race over a six-furlong trip.

The one to note other than the winner and the runner-up is Visionaire. Trevor was luckless in this race and found Gamba coming in his way more than once. He was checked twice in the homestretch and that proved fatal. So watch out for Visionaire to make his next appearance count. Ptolemy (Bianconi – Countess Margaux) pulled a fast one on the hapless followers of form and proved a money-spinner to only those who were privy to this huge coup. This left a bad taste in the mouth after a hugely successful day. Ptolemy had no recognizable form, nor any recent suggestive run. To top it, he was not to be found on the morning track work logs either, as no time-keeper had any recording of his work timing! The fair players in this game would accept a rank-outsider confounding their calculations at mind-boggling odds. This is racing after all and one is prepared for this. But to see a horse getting backed down with such alarming confidence the way Ptolemy was and the horse obliging in the manner he did was too good a co-incidence to stomach. I am not trying, for a moment, to sound a bad loser or for that matter a sourpuss. I have seen Noble Eagle win the Indian Derby and believe me that was a shocker! The world accepted this – bewildered but that was okay with most. Noble Eagle was not backed down and the uncertainty of the sport was taken in the right spirit. But Ptolemy? Backed down from the tens to around 7/2 at race time? On what grounds? Here is where the intent of fair play or otherwise comes into the picture. The authorities have to ensure that common punters do not feel that they have been done in by the shrewder players of the game.

Well, what do I describe? Ptolemy won, Golden Spurs just failed to get him. Kite Runner ended a notable third! Swoosh (Diffident – Reclaimed) from the stables of Imtiaz Sait started off the day well for her owners Tarita and Chetan Wakalkar, who were sponsoring a multi-million later in the day, in memory of their father. Swoosh definitely had the form to pull off the race as she had run an eye-catching third in her last start when she was languishing in twelfth position at the bend. As the gates opened, Grey Phantom and Suraj Narredu tried to make it a start-to-finish affair. With a furlong left, though the front-runner’s lead was fast diminishing with every stride, Swoosh gathered momentum and flew past to stretch clear. Swoosh was being eased up at the post by Rajendra while Grey Phantom was hard ridden and whipped to retain the second spot ahead of Rob N Rob. The last named, simply put, was a false favourite. Swoosh was a deserving winner for her owners. Mr Vivek Jain announced at the presentation ceremony of the Sahaan Juvenile Multi-Million that the Wakalkar family, who run highly reputed educational institutions in Pune, have offered free education to deserving children of the stable-hands, giving them an opportunity to learn and get ahead in life. A truly noble and heart-warming gesture indeed!