The question on everyone’s mind was Shroff’s choice of jockey to ride Mathaiyus as Srinath carried an overweight of 5.5 kilos. Well, that hardly mattered in the end as Srinath justified that faith and delivered handsomely to carve out a fairly comfortable victory in the end. Mathaiyus saw a drift in odds at race time and with Palatial getting good support in the ring, the tension, rather excitement, grew as the horses left for the gates.

Caesars Star made the early pace with a leisurely gallop with Vulcan in chase, Srinath held Mathaiyus (Multidimensional – Yana, Usha Stud) in third ahead of Palatial and She is Special. Vulcan took charge early in the straight and soon Srinath made a tactical surge forward to get alongside the new leader. That early intent to move ahead proved crucial as Mathaiyus gained the upper hand early in the straight. The favourite kicked on gamely to get past Vulcan and then sustained through the final furlong to ward off a late bid from Palatial. With Palatial having to cover a leeway of a good three lengths with less than a furlong to go, Mathaiyus looked the winner as he closed in towards the winning post. He eventually won by less than a length but never looked in danger of being caught at any stage.

The first race of the day saw a big gamble pulled off as Flag Flying (Whatsthescript – Shockwave, Nanoli Stud) was heavily backed at race time and the high odds on him dwindled to around 5/2 in the ring. Flag Flying was entrusted to rookie jockey K Nazil claiming five, and he did a good job of it, reducing the race to a ‘no contest’ once they turned for home. Flag Flying made an aggressive dash soon on straightening up and steamed ahead to win drawing away. Trainer Hormuz Antia is known for nominating his horses with confidence and this was one such occasion where a good gamble bore fruit in a manner that was admirable as it was commendable. Pilatus improved to finish second and Celestial Light came in late to take place money.

Narendra Lagad, also known to score with long-shots, provided one such with juggernaut (Diffident – Cincinnati, Yerawada Stud) to win the Ahmed I Rahimtoola Trophy. His popular ‘take-jump-hit-front’ ploy working to perfection with trusted jockey Dashrath Singh astride. Juggernaut was off quickly and led the field with Princess P in second, Queens Best and Gentillesse came next with the rest not too far behind.

Juggernaut stretched out nicely in the straight but had Gentillesse and Queens Best lurking just behind. He however had enough fire power to hold on stubbornly to score his maiden victory just ahead of Queens best and Gentillesse.

Bounty Queen (Bahamian Bounty – Evening Tale, Jai Govind Stud) proved that her last win was no fluke as she produced an even better show on the track t beat higher rated opponents with ease. Arakawah led them into the straight and had a good lead too, but was soon joined by favourite Pink Panther. However, Bounty Queen appeared on the scene and flashed past them all to build a good lead to romp home in style. Pink Panther faded away without a whimper. Sparkling Eyes ran on but it was Glorious Opinion who finished on well to pip Sparkling Eyes for the runner up spot.

Jockey P Trevor scored a double on the day. He first partnered favourite Grey Flannel (Arazan – Bid For Gold, Villoo’s Greenfield Farm) to a convincing win. Grey Flannel quickened well once in the straight and zipped past early leader Snowy Peaks soon on turning for home. Once in the lead, the Dallas Todywalla ward accelerated well to steer clear of her rivals and win sparing a length and three-quarters to secure her first career victory. Naumee ran on to end second and Pristina pegged back Snowy Peaks for the place money.

Trevor next returned triumphant in the last race with Imtiaz Sait’s well-backed Dishoom (Rebuttal – My Mood, Hazara Stud). Silk Baby moved past Slam Dunk to take charge and was heading towards the winning post. Dishoom made his final run count as he started inching closer with each stride and in the final dash got past Silk Baby to score a comfortable victory. Silk Baby could not capitalize in the final furlong and ended second ahead of Makino.

Zadmal Singh trained Sudarshan Chakra Hammerstein – Turanya, Krishna Stud) with TS Jodha in the saddle, flew in the final moments of what looked like a cavary charge in the last furlong. It looked anybody’s race as Forever Yours, Zion, The Giver, Amazon Cat, Rachel and Sudarshan Chakra were all huddled together with less than a furlong to go. Sudarshan Chakra finished on fastest to clinch the issue with Rachel doing well to end second ahead of Forever Yours and Zion.

Jockey P Trevor was the lone pro to score a double.