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Star of Windsor breezes home
By Sharan Kumar | 26 Jan 2004 | BANGALORE
Star Of Windsor (C Rajendra up) winner of The Bangalore Derby being led by trainer Ganapathy
The problem of plenty is what confronts the formidable Ganapathy stable. While Fond Fantasy’s amazing run of wins came to an end as the filly was unable to cope with her lameness problem and went down with perhaps a tendon injury, stable mate Star of Windsor came good in spectacular fashion to win the Gr 1 Bangalore Derby on Monday.
Ganapathy and Rajendra combine thus had an unforgettable week, having been associated with the success in the Gr 1 Golconda Derby only the previous day. Ganapathy has had remarkable run in the classics in his short span as a trainer. The back up is so good that if one fails, there is always some other horse to fall back upon. The highly-strung Star of Windsor has matured into a seasoned performer after his sojourn at Mysore and Ganapathy deserves credit for bringing out the best in him. Horses sporting pacifier blinkers have rarely done well but Star of Windsor, by winning the Derby in resplendent style, has proved that the equipment is not a deterrent.
Fond Fantasy carried so much class that she was able to overcome her physical problems and win her share of races. The way she limped off to the stable after her win in the Gr 2 Bangalore Oaks, many doubted whether she would be in the line up for the Derby at all. But Fond Fantasy was back on the track and seen doing spirited work though at the back of the mind, one had a feeling that the Derby might prove too much for her. She sported a professional boot that is used to protect the tendon, suspensory and the joints. However, she was not up to overcoming her physical discomforts and was beaten well before the runners took the final bend. But she has had her share of success like her full sister Wandering Star who incidentally is the dam of Star of Windsor.
Breno set the pace as the field set out for the mile and half trip, with Fond Fantasy, Adrian, Decent
Proposal, Star of Windsor and Spark of Glory settled in varying positions from sixth to last. Approaching the 800 metres marker, Martin Dwyer made his move on Adrian, improving his position quickly on the wide outside and pushed the son of Glory of Dancer to the front as the horses turned for home. Adrian shot clear of the field even as Decent Proposal came bouncing into contention along with Spark of Glory. While Adrian kicked on resolutely with both Decent Proposal and Spark of Glory failing to collar the front-runner, Rajendra on Star of Windsor maneuvered his way from the rear and set alight the son of Steinbeck on the wide outside. Star of Windsor devoured ground so
quickly that Rajendra could afford to stand up on the horse with some distance to go and celebrate his back-to-back success in the Derbys. This was Derby number 3 for Rajendra who had earlier in the month been successful on Psychic Flame at Kolkata. Rajendra’s act of celebrating the success by standing up on the horse did not go well with the Stipes who slapped him a fine of Rs 5,000 for his shenanigans. Such things are fraught with danger and could cost the connections dear should there be a slip of any kind.
Fantabulous King emerged as a classic contender when winning the 1400 metres Narasimharaja Cup, a rich terms race for three-year olds in great style. The son of Burden of Proof proved too good for the likes of Moon Emperor, winning by a widening margin of over seven lengths. Fantabulous King will next race in the Gr 1 Poonawalla Breeders’ Multi-Million. Jockey Pesi Shroff who guided Fantabulous King is of the opinion that the three-year old colt is truly a classic material and his stupendous performance had come about despite him being far from achieving the desired fitness. Randsberg who finished third, also has classic pretensions but he needs time.
Southern Regent barely managed to stave of the challenge of Laughing Wild in the NRCE Trophy, a race for maiden three-year olds. The five and half furlong trip was sharp for the son of Razeen who overcame the handicap on sheer fitness.
The Vidhana Soudha Cup, a race for horses rated 20 to 35, was run in two divisions. In the upper division, No Excuses showed improvement over her previous run and managed to stave off the challenge of Torodoro who cornered lot of public support. There was inspired support for Simply Amazing but the son of Don’t Forget Me found the trip too sharp for comfort. In the lower division, Wishbone who had found one better on several occasions, finally obliged, benefiting by the five kg allowance claimed by his jockey as well as the misfortune of favourite Most Convincing who ran into
traffic problem at the early part of the race which prevented from taking a striking position early on.
Despite stumbling approaching the final bend, Most Convincing finished on strongly but Wishbone had
reached the safety of the winning post.
Dominic trained Believer continued his upward march by easily collaring the opposition in the Mysore Race Club Trophy, a terms race for four-year olds and over. There was support for Sure Future who had not proved her credentials over the mile long trip and the five-year old mare found the trip beyond her compass, fading out of the reckoning inside the final furlong. Believer who led the field soon after the start, kicked on gamely to win in convincing fashion. Son of the Light, who was seen in action after a longish break, edged out Refresher for the second spot.
The Indian Republic Trophy (Div I) saw Brora relish the extended trip of seven furlongs and score a narrow win over Zidane, La Bella Vita and Street Smart. Zidane flashed on home rather late and missed the berth narrowly while La Bella Vita who had all the chances was a noteworthy third. In the lower division, Appu drove out Star Eaglle to a resolute win over Maurya who shaped to cause a big upset. In the day’s other action, Arjun Mangalorkar trained South Sea won at the expense of Zabdiel at nourishing odds.
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