Trainer C.V.G.K.Kishore collected the Chamundi Hills Trophy with a ‘Class Above’ performance from his ward in the feature. Class Above (Oath-Renascent / Pratap Stud) jumped out smartly from draw 2 and headed to lead the field. The gelding was well in command entering the home stretch with a lead of about three lengths and quickened readily under Arshad Alam to maintain that advantage when Clever Trick began to offer a challenge. Siddhani and Sancy finished third and fourth respectively while the well backed favourite Cosmic Touch ended up a tame fifth.

The most impressive winner of the day was Cinch (Burden of Proof-Polenta / Kunigal Stud) in the Phalguni River Plate. The 5 year old R.Mallikarjuna trainee had recently shifted base from Bangalore and she finished a close second to Majestic Queen on this track just a week ago. Sent off as the favourite at 6-4, Cinch travelled nicely in about fifth position till the last 600 metres. She began to move up from the outside as they turned for home and breezed ahead to be in front on top of the straight. Cinch was held on tight reins by jockey Vivek and was never extended. Miss International was finishing on to take the second spot ahead of Carisa and Demanding Format.

Trainer Kishore was the only professional to score a brace on the day. His ward Rocketeer (Senure-Aquila Oculus / Manjri Stud) snatched the victory in the shadow of the winning post from Artic Rose in the Brindavan Gardens Plate. Artic Rose carrying the top weight in the race set off on a start to finish bid and was clear by four lengths with 400 metres left from home. Rocketeer came out of the pack behind and started to challenge strongly. Rocketeer began to bridge the gap but Artic Rose continued to hold the advantage. Jockey V R Jagadeesh began to ride out Rocketeer and his relentless efforts paid off when the gelding responded brilliantly to get the better of Artic Rose by a neck close to the wire. Another fancied runner Kolaveri Di finished third 3 ¾ lengths adrift.

Md. Sajid Qureshi trained Breezo (Hymn-Colonel’s Dream / Jai Govind Stud) pulled off a stunning upset in the Renowned Plate. Pepper King held forte till the final bend with Robinhood Pandey on its haunches. Breezo raced third all the way. Into the home stretch Robinhood Pandey went to the front and Breezo was quick to come up with a challenge from the outside. The two fought out every inch from thereon and Breezo snatched the verdict in its favour close to the winning post. Infinithoughts just managed to finish third ahead of Always On Top. Beautiful Life was withdrawn on veterinary grounds near the gates.

Chandini (Crown Jewel-Princess Chand / Noble Stud) under the care of trainer Vishal Yadav completed an encore in fine fashion in the Pinakini Plate. The 5 year old was held back in the last position from the start with Flirting King calling the shots almost seven lengths ahead. Inside the last 400 metres apprentice Sarvan Kumar pulled her out to come around the field and when given a few cracks came with telling strides to settle the issue well before the last 100 metres. Oriental Masti slipped along the rails to nudge out Flirting King for the runner-up berth. Esoterical filled the judge’s frame.

Vrajanandan (Hurricane State-Little Miss / Dashmesh Stud) finally got to the winner’s enclosure in the lower division of the Chitrakoota Plate, the opener of the day. The 6 year old who was backed with conviction for the sprint settled nicely along the fence while Queens Cruise and Magnetic Power fought out in front. Inside the last 200 metres Vrajanandan was pulled out for a run from the outside and the gelding swept past the front runners to win by a lengthening margin. Magnetic Power finished second despite bursting its blood vessels while Queens Cruise ended up third.

Kallistrate (Oath-Romantic Dreams / Pratap Stud) from trainer M Pratap Kamath’s yard, a maiden from eight starts, shed its status in the higher division.There was a heavy downpour as the horses began to move into the gates. Kallistrate was quick to get to the lead as the gates opened with Mountain Glory in chase. Into the straight Kallistrate kept kicking on well to win by a good 3 ¼ lengths. Stride To Success came in late to get the better of Mountain Glory for the second place.