Irfan Ghatala’s Wind Stream asserted his superiority over his five rivals by galloping away with The Abaran Bangalore 2000 Guineas  (Grade II)  on Saturday. The winner of The Poonawalla Mysore Derby confirmed that his victory that day was no flash in the pan, and also, that he is quite a versatile competitor. Since Wind Stream and Super Storm had ended within half a length of each other at Mysore, it was felt that the verdict this time would be equally close. Because Super Storm had led into the straight and Wind Stream had beaten him in the final furlong, it was further felt that the mile would be better suited to Super Storm. The confusion in the mind of the punters was reflected on the betting boards. The pair shared equal support with the bookmakers. As regards the other four, Shivalik Pride and Simpleton were rated much below their opponents. Shivalik Star had the class, but his limitations of stamina had been exposed. On a number of occasions, Unforgettable had  been beaten by the fancied runners in this race. Therfore, if one was to have a bet, it had to be restricted to either Wind Stream or Super Storm.

 Shivalik Star set a decent pace and went ahead of Unchallenged, Wind Stream and Super Storm. They raced in single file throughout the back-stretch and a couple of lengths separated each from the other. With hardly anyone seeming to be in a hurry, the horses were relaxed as they took the rising ground near the three furlong marker. It was at this stage that the race came to a boil. Suraj asked Wind Stream to quicken while Srinath popped the same question to Super Storm. The responses that they got from their mounts were far from identical. While Wind Stream moved ahead with determination, Super Storm made heavy weather of his efforts. It was clear that this was a one horse affair. Wind Stream powered ahead of Shivalik Star to lift this prestigious trophy. Super Storm failed to overtake Unforgettable and had to be content with the fourth place on the boards. Irfan has tuned Wind Stream to Perfection and he has responded wonderfully to his master’s training. He is sure to carry the public purse in the Winter Derby.

Trainer Dominic distinguished himself by producing a couple of juveniles in immaculate condition and winning both divisions of a sprint event reserved for maiden two year olds. The manner in which they won was extremely suggestive, and it would be fair to say that these horses have a bright future. In the top division, it was the Dhariwal trained Agostini that carried the public confidence. The even-money favourite had run a fair third in a similar event a couple of weeks ago. With the said experience under his belt, the colt was expected to strip fitter today. On sheer paddock looks, Dominic trained Czar Of Romance looked like a live threat to the him. Since both these runners were drawn on the wide outside, it took them a while to go to the front. Agostini showed better speed to lead Czar Of Romance into the straight. While Srinath had already used his stick on the leader, Martin Wepner had waited a while. There was little doubt that the latter was moving better than the leader, and it was only a matter of time before he would assume command of the proceedings. Czar Of Romance led into the final furlong and powered away from the rest. Agostini’s owner mate Charlatan came with a late bid to end within a short-head of the favourite. He looks good to win in the near future.

 The lower division of this baby race happened to be the day’s opener. Neil Darashah’s Strengthandwonder was a strong favourite to win this race. This well-bred horse had done some brilliant work and the yard was hugely optimistic about his chances. Dominic’s Solitaire Royale received late support, and this mount of Martin Wepner looked equally good in the paddock. Mulrennan took Strengthandwonder to the front and settled his mount in front of Flashing Colours, Beauty Is Truth and Solitaire Royale. Soon after entering the straight, he asked the favourite to quicken. Not finding anything extra in the tank, he panicked. Despite making free use of the whip, he remained a silent spectator as Solitaire Royal buzzed past him. The latter carried Martin Wepner to a facile victory and credited the South African jockey with his first winner this season. Strengthandwonder just about lasted out to hold Beauty Is Truth and a late finishing Southern Sky at the wire.

A mile handicap for horses in class II produced a real thrilling finish. Ganapathy’s Own Asset, who had opened up a fairly large lead at the top of the straight was all but caught by Darius Byramji’s Saganaki at the wire. Fancied Mi Amor had done the early work and run out of gas at the bend. Own Asset and State Secret, who were right behind at that stage, went ahead of her. Liam Jones used his whip and forced Own Asset to increase the momentum. The chestnut responded bravely and sailed clear of State Secret. Not many noticed a move from behind. Franco DaSilva and Saganaki had just about got into their rhythm. The filly gained ground with each stride and came alongside. It was a timely arrival of the winning post that saved the day for Own Asset. Only a short head separated him from Saganaki at the finish. State Secret plodded along to retain her third spot on the result boards. Incidentally, this was the first winner for jockey Liam Jones in Dr Ramaswamy’s colours at Bangalore.

The Kumararajah MAM Muthiah Trophy was split into two divisions. The upper division of this sprint for horses rated 40-65 was expected to be a two horse affair. The betting boards showed that both top weighted Esteban and Thunderbay had received exactly equal support with the bookmakers. Those who had backed Thunderbay were dismayed by what happened at the start of this race. The filly refused to come out of the gates and took no part in the proceedings. Since she had come under the starter’s orders, all the money wagered on her went down the drain. Those who had backed Esteban also had their pangs of nervousness. With Volcano setting a real fast pace and going clear at the bend, apprentice Mudassar and Esteban were in a tight spot. They moved along with Amalfi towards the leader, and the lead began to diminish thereafter. It was apparent that one out of the two challengers was going to get Volcano before the wire. In fact, both of them succeeded in doing so. But finally, it was Esteban who prevailed over Amalfi and Volcano. Less than a length separated the three of them at the finish.

 The lower division resulted in a win for Dhariwal’s Whistlejacket. This sparingly raced three year old had beaten the highly regarded An Acquired Taste in a maiden’s event over a sprint in summer. Dhariwal had chosen to increase his distance and had run him over seven furlongs in handicap company thereafter. He had failed to stay that trip. After a longish gap of five months, Whistlejacket was re-appearing on a race track. With money flowing in the direction of Wind Of Soul and Real Steel today, he was almost friendless in this race. Vaideeshwaran gave him a nice ride and allowed him to settle behind A Game To Remember, Wind Of Soul, Rich Celebration and Real Steel. While the others were seen hustling their mounts at the bend, vaideeshwaran waited a bit longer. After getting him on an even keel, he pushed Whistlejacket. The horse gave him a wonderful response and shot ahead of the others. In a minor clash for the minor berths, Rich Celebration knocked off Wind Of Soul from the second spot. Real Steel came to a crawl at the end and finished a poor fourth.

 Rank outsider Bebo dropped a huge bombshell by making every post a winning one in a class IV sprint on Saturday. The 75/1 chance made full use of her inner draw and went ahead of Day Trader and Raaga at the start. The three of them settled in close order till the bend. Their jockeys got busy in the straight and tried to wrest the initiative from each other. However, nothing changed thereafter. With Vinod Shinde riding a strong finish, Dhariwal trained Bebo enjoyed the support of the rails and held onto her initial advantage. Raaga failed in his mission to overtake Day Trader, and was forced to settle for the third spot. Favourite Star Of Desire ran no sort of race and finished in the ruck.

 A seven furlong event for horses in the lowest category attracted a number of three year olds. The one that attracted the maximum attention was Prasanna Kumar’s Abba’s Dream. He had been quietly fancied in maiden sets earlier in his career, but had not been good enough to deliver the goods. Today’s race looked easy pickings for him. After receiving all round support under John, he stamped his authority over this event. John eased him into an early advantage and never looked back. Abba’s Dream got stronger and stronger, and finally won by a widening margin over a heavily whipped pair of Turf Fame and Samovar. In fact, this race turned out to be more of a procession. The order remained the same from start to finish. Now that Abba’s Dream has discovered his winning ways, the youngster should be able to win his next start in the higher category.

The only other race in the day’s card saw the Padmanabhan trained Sans Frontiers competing against a group of class IV opponents. This well bred horse had failed over marginally shorter trips as a youngster, and his trainer had chosen to campaign him over 1400 metres today. Since he had done some smart work on the training track, there were many who supported him with confidence. He allowed the speedy Cheque Discounter to go ahead till the bend, and with Vaibhav giving him a balanced ride, Sans Frontiers travelled comfortably into the straight. However, the expected acceleration failed to materialize. While Cheque Discounter continued his dominance in front, Sans Frontiers moved sideways. He first rolled out under pressure, and then ducked towards the inner rails.  Inspite of all these antics, Sans Frontiers still managed to maintain his second place ahead of Bank On Me and Serengity. There were two horses that impressed in this race. The first one was Youre Rocking. The five year old was prominent till the final furlong. He will be too good to miss over a shoter trip the day he runs against horses in his own age group. The second one was Bank On Me. After getting squeezed out at the start, she came with a flourish to end a very good second. A win for her seems round the corner.