Akashima (Kingda Ka – Alexandra Pearl) saddled by Deshmukh, lived up to the expectations and promise she had shown in her last run and thumped the opposition to win the Godolphin Barb Million with a good measure of comfort.  

Amyra hit the front with the others following in a closely bunched group, Akashima racing along the rails in the fifth until the turn. Amyra strode out well on entering the straight with Artemis Arrow taking a while to gather momentum. Akashima, with jockey Ajeeth Kumar in the saddle, arrived with a big run approaching the distance post and then switched gears to cruise past Artemis Arrow and Amyra with ease and drew away to increase the margin with every stride, willing handsomely by more than three lengths. Artemis Arrow wore down Amyra to take the runner-up berth.

Laxman Singh trained Rikki Tikki Tavi (Excellent Art – Starvella) put in a strong finish to pull away in the final few strides in the hands of jockey David Egan to clinch the DR MAM Ramaswamy Memorial Cup. Rikki Tikki Tavi was quick at the jump but soon settled in the fourth spot as King Maker and Havelock cruise went at a tearing pace with Exclusive Blue a couple of lengths behind.

While King Maker bowed out soon on turning for home, Rikki Tikki Tavi started to pick up momentum passing the 400m mark and the got past his rivals with ease to take charge. Egan was well in control in the final furlong even as Havelock cruise and Exclusive Blue seemed to rally on, however, Rikki Tikki Tavi shot further ahead in the last fifty to post victory that was a lot more comfortable than the one-length-plus margin may suggest.

Yours Forever (Arazan – Yutai) trained by Srikant was ridden well by apprentice Surya Kumar to win the division one of the MCEME Rolling Trophy at a lucrative 6/1. Sitara had just gone ahead to take over the running past the 400m marker when Yours Forever and Rapid Fire opened throttle at the same juncture. Sitara was completely floored by the two and offered no resistance as they blazed past. Yours Forever galloped at a cracking pace to storm the finish to beat Rapid Fire easily to the post. Sitara squandered a good chance and ended a tame third, a neck ahead of Dancing Doll.   

A change of name proved lucky for Rahil now racing as Makram (Whatsthescript – Hoofbeats) as he added to his tally of two previous wins. He raced in fifth until the turn and jockey Afroz Khan skirted around horses to get Makram a clear passage. Arc of History was in the lead and both Esteva and Flamingo Flame who were close behind failed to quicken. Makram moved up fluently and raised a fast gallop to storm ahead past the distance post and shutting his opponents out with his good burst of speed at the business end to seal the issue. Ashka Ashka Ashka arrived with a late flash to take the second place from Incredulous and Arc of history.

Appenzelle (Lord Admiral – Disarming) justified the strong support she received by romping home a comfortable winner and score her maiden win. The D Netto trainee took charge soon on turning for home and passed the front runners on a tight rein. Jockey Kiran Naidu just had to niggle her a bit and Appenzelle was soon stretching away from competition. Lamha tried hard to catch up, but Appenzelle proved too good on the day. O’Sheehan kicked on to finish third a neck behind Lamha.

L D’Silva trained Elmira (Green Coast – Tiana) was equally impressive showing considerable improvement over her two previous runs to score an emphatic start to finish victory to secure her maiden win. She was off to a good start in the hands of jockey Ajit Singh and never looked back. Elmira dominated throughout the race and galloped further away to win by a little over three lengths from Spicy Star and Fleur. Moringa, the fancied runner, lost her chances owing to a sluggish start, but rallied on to finish close behind Fleur.

Ice Warrior (Net Whizz – Christmas Fever), saddled by Sateesh, saved his best for the last and finished on fastest to beat a bunch of horses hurtling towards the winning post in the final furlong. Mind Reader tried the runaway tactics that went horrible wrong. Rutilant, Sun Dancer and Barbosella were in a line when Ice Warrior poked through between horses to make his way to the front. Once he got the gap, it was all over as Ice Warrior with Nakhat Singh in the saddle, zipped ahead to won convincingly. Barbosella edged out Sun Dancer for the second slot.

Prasad Raju trained Secret Command (Arazan – Mint Approach) shot into the lead with Air Salute alongside and these guided the field into the homestretch. The pair fought on into the straight with Secret Command enjoying a slight edge over Air Salute. Star Racer started to warm up past the distance post and produced a powerful gallop from the outside. While Air Salute fell back, Secret Command, ridden ably by jockey PS Chouhan,  fought on bravely all the way and successfully warded off the challenger showing great resolve to battle on. Star Racer put in an equally good performance and went down by a whisker. Sputnic covered a lot of ground in the straight and did well to finish in the money.

Sateesh trained Solo Winner (Knight’s Tour – Mink Mitten) rallied well in the straight to catch Red Snaper right in time. Red Snaper had a good lead coming into the straight and he galloped on gamely and even shaped well approaching the distance post. Solo Winner picked up momentum steadily and inched closer with every stride. Apprentice jockey Jitendra Singh rode out confidently and managed to get past Red Snaper to win by half a length. Tiger of the Sea ran on to finish third.

Gusty Note (Gusto – Key Note) trained by Netto scored a facile start to finish victory notching up his maiden win on seventh start. He was quick at start and galloped like a well-oiled machine all through and won without encountering any challenge. It was all too easy for Gusty Note who won by almost three lengths. Merry Dane held off the fast finishing Dillon for the runner up berth.

For the professionals, trainers LVR Deshmukh, D Netto and Sateesh saddled a double each.