It was Madras Race Club which played a major part in the institution of the Indian Turf Invitation Cup, Gr.1. After all, horses from Guindy had been going to Mahalakshmi for the Indian Derby for a few years and the Chennai trainers felt that the gap between the Pongal Derby and the Indian Derby was rather short. An Invitation Cup in March gave them a better chance of competing on level terms. Mount Everest, a Chennai horse, won the first Invitation Cup to vindicate them. When seventeen years later the Sprinters' Cup, Gr.1 was introduced at Calcutta, it was a filly from Chennai, Guindy Girl, who proved to be the fastest. The following year came the Stayers' Cup, Gr.1 and once again the honour of winning the inaugural running fell to a Chennai horse, Own Opinion. Own Opinion was owned by Dr. M.A.M. Ramaswamy and the Stayers' Cup has carried the owner's name for the last three years.

The first horse to win two Invitation races was Common Land's son Klairon Gold who proved to be the speediest horse in India in 1983 and 1984. Since then, Oasis Star, Nefyn, Attila, Adam and Ruffina have bagged a sprint double. There are three Stayers' Cup doubles and they have recorded by horses whose names begin with the first letter of the alphabet -- Aztec, Ardiles and Astapi. Only one horse, though, has won the Super Mile twice and that is Serjeant At Arms. No horse has yet won the Invitation Cup twice though the opportunity to do so occurred only seven years ago. However, two Invitation Cup winners, Own Opinion and Tintinnabulation picked up a Stayers' Cup later. The Sprinters' Cup-Super mile double at the same week-end is probably the most sought after -- and the most difficult -- double. Bergamo in 1985 and Strengthtostrength in 2002 have accomplished that tough task. Spectacular Quest, too, did it but in different years.

This recap of Invitation Doubles is to illustrate how rare they are. Their very rarity makes them all the more cherished and is something that discerning racegoers look forward to at each Invitation Cup week-end. This year, there will be no Sprinters' Cup double because none of the previous winners will be action. Ruffina has retired to stud and is expecting her first foal by Roderic O'Connor shortly. A Sprinters' Cup-Super Mile double is not even a theoretical possibility this year with no common runners in the two races. The connections and fans of Desert God and Adjudicate will be keeping their fingers, arms and toes crossed in anticipation and the odds on one of them becoming the first to win the Invitation Cup twice will be good if not lucrative. As in the case of the Sprinters' Cup, the Super Mile field also does not contain a previous winner. The shortest odds for a double will be on Sacred Roman (Holy Roman Emperor - Clicquot) successfully defending his Stayers' Cup, Gr.1 crown. The presence of Whomakestherules in the field has opens up the possibility of a Super Mile-Stayers' Cup double which is being attempted; probably, for the first time.

After finishing a faraway fourth in Star Superior's Kingfisher Ultra Indian Derby, Gr.1, Sacred Roman lined up for this race at Hyderabad. He led from the word "Go", set a moderate pace, didn't panic when Kambaku decided to take over and inject a bit of faster tempo and moved up smoothly to collar the front runner in the straight and win by four lengths from the late finishing Raees. He didn't get a race of a suitable distance after that -- he was also sidelined for about four months, probably  due to some niggles -- till the Byculla Club Cup in January when he won all the way, giving Raees  three kgs. and a three length beating. On that showing, he shapes as the one to beat. Ever since the Byculla Club Cup was brought forward to a January date from its earlier scheduling at the fag end of the Mumbai season, it has proved a fair lead-up to the Stayers' Cup, Gr.1. Maseeha and Native Knight followed up their wins in the Byculla with a Stayers' Cup triumph while Astapi improved from third to first. Sacred Roman is from the same family as Flying Visit who will be running in the Suresh Mahindra Multi-Million, Gr.2 on Sunday. It is also the family of Lei, Venus Arising, Tasawwur and others. Sacred Roman is bred on the same lines as Manifold and Multifaceted being by a son of Danehill out of an Elusive Quality mare.

It is no walkover, though, for the title holder. He faces a stern challenge from a quartet of Multidimensionals.  Point To Prove (out of Burooq) won the Queen Elizabeth II Cup on his last start and will come from behind. He has taken his time to rise up the ranks and is following the route taken by Astapi and Azzurro in the last ten years. Astapi was only fifth in the QE-II -- as the race is referred to locally -- before his second Stayers' Cup and Azzurro second. Point To Prove's dam is an A P Indy mare from the Horama family which has produced Epsom Derby winners Teenoso and Sir Percy. His formline is not as impressive as Ambrosio and Cosmos but he has a black-type win -- beyond 2400 m. -- which the other two don't.

Both Ambrosio (out of Ambrosia) and Cosmos (out of Razeen's last Classic winner, the Golconda St. Leger, Gr.2 victress Hills and Stars) commenced their careers rather late and have excellent records. Ambrosio has won four of his eight races and finished the runner-up in the other four. Cosmos has won five times from seven starts and has never been off the board. Both won over 2400 m. for the first time employing front running tactics on their last starts to earn their nominations for this race. It is to be seen whether either of them challenges Sacred Roman for the lead or stalks the pace. Ambrosio is from the same family as Revelation and generally the fillies from this clan have been better. Ambrosio's dam was a full-sister Monfieth, a rare good colt from the Mindful family. Both Ambrosio and Cosmos are by Multidimensional out of Razeen's daughters. The dam of Cosmos, Hills and Stars, was a three-parts sister to Adamile. Multidimensional has produced  the full-sisters Amelia and Myrtlewood out of Adamile, both winners of the Super Mile Cup, Gr.1. Neither Ambrosia nor Hills and Stars is alive today.

The remaining Multidimensional is Whomakestherules (out of Pricewise). A previous winner of the Maj. P.K. Mehra Memorial Super Mile Cup, Gr.1, he was also nominated for that race but takes his chance in the longer event. After winning the Calcutta 2000 Guineas, Gr.2, he was sidelined with a serious set-back and his trainer Malesh Narredu did well to get him back on track and racing at the top end. In seventeen starts after his Super Mile triumph, Whomakestherules has no win over that distance. He was second to Point To Prove last time out in Queen Elizabeth II Cup, Gr.3 over 2800.His longest winning distance is 2000 m. (Indian Champion Cup, Gr.1 in 2019).  His dam is a half-sister to Avalanche Star who won the Super Mile in 1998. She is also a full-sister to Allied Forces, winner of the Wills Stayers' Cup, Gr.1 in 2000. Whomakestherules is talented, comfortable making the running or coming from behind and on his day capable of springing a surprise. He, generally, makes his own rules. With Malesh Narredu under suspension, he will be saddled by Shyam Habbu.  Multidimensional's progeny has won one Invitation Cup, two Sprinters' Cups and three Super Mile Cups. The son of Danehill, however, is waiting for his first Stayers' Cup.

The Suresh Mahindra Trophy over 3200 m. at Pune is the longest race in the country and Raees (Sedgefield - Lost Perfection) has won it thrice. He is, without a doubt, a confirmed stayer. This will be his third Stayers' Cup, Gr.1, having been fifth at Calcutta and second last year at Hyderabad. Now a seven year-old, he has finished second to Sacred Roman in their last two meetings and turning the tables won't be easy.

With Classic generation concentrating on the Invitation Cup, older horses have had this race very much to themselves, bagging 30 of the 39 renewals.This is also the most punter friendly Gr.1 of the week-end with 49 % of the favourites scoring. Very few good fillies remain in training beyond the age of 5 -- most of them are at stud -- and hence this race has gone to the fair sex just eight times. There is no filly in the field this year.  Royal Crystal and Southern Ruler, both Classic winners, represent the Classic crop.  Royal Crystal scored a fighting victory in the Golconda Derby, Gr.1 beating Classic winners Consigliori, Paso Robles and Vijays Singham. In the Kingfisher Ultra Indian Derby, Gr.1, he was up in the front group chasing Consigliori, third coming into the straight but fizzled out to miss the board. That run does not suggest that he will appreciate the additional 600 m. on Saturday unless he is ridden differently. For a while in the Indian Derby, Royal Crystal and Southern Ruler were fighting it out behind War Hammer and Wizard of Stocks. Southern Ruler dropped out but on pedigree he is better suited for the trip. More importantly, he is returning to the course where he has won his only race. Horses for courses ? 

There are 10 runners vying for the stayers' crown and size-wise, it is on par with the average of last ten years. The field rating, however, is down by four points and only in the years of Captain Morgan and Sacred Roman has it been lower. Three top-rated runners, five favourites including a joint favourite, two 'got-abroads' and five Mumbai-based runners have been to the fore in the last  ten years. Jockey P. Trevor is the only rider to have won it twice during the same period and so has trainer S.S. Attaolahi, among the professionals with a runner.. 

PAST THE POST

A double of the Sprinters' Cup and Stayers' Cup on the same day is unimaginable and no horse has even attempted it. However, two jockeys and three trainers have been associated with both the winners on the same day.  Aslam Kader achieved it in 1995 with Exclusive Virtue and Astronomic. The next day, he won the Invitation Cup astride Elusive Pimpernel and looked set for a Gr.1 quadruple -- yet to be achieved -- when he went to the post on the favourite Exclusive Virtue who was attempting a Sprinters' Cup-Super Mile double. Their bid was foiled by Pesi Shroff and Accomplish. The other jockey to do a Sprinters' Cup-Stayers' Cup double was B. Prakash on the S. Ganapathy-trained pair of Spectacular Quest and Forever Elegance at Bangalore in 2006. Ganapathy was only emulating what trainer Padmanabhan (Lyrical Bid-Moment of Glory in 1998) and M. Eshwer (Bryce Canyon-Bay of Angels in 2003) had achieved earlier. Poonawalla Farms have accomplished the double thrice. First, in 1986 when Recardo and Calibre, both by Malvado won their respective races. Then in 2003 through Bryce Canyon and Bay of Angels and again in 2006 when Spectacular Quest and Forever Elegance, both by Placerville, were the winners.   

Registering a clean sweep of the four Gr.1 races at one Invitation Cup week-end remains the ultimate dream of any professional, owner or a stud farm. So far, it has been a mirage though there have also been some near misses. If it is taken as team contest between the various centres, then Mumbai has achieved it four times -- in 1989, 2004, 2014 and 2015. It must be mentioned, though, that in 1989 the Super Mile Cup was not run and there were only three Gr.1 events. Colts have won all the four Gr.1 over the week-end thirteen times but the fillies have managed it just once; that was in 1999. The Classic generation ruled the roost in 1989, 1997 and 2008. Favourites losing all four Gr.1s is more common (8 times) than their winning them all (twice, both at Calcutta, in 1985 and 2007). In the last ten years, at least one favourite has won a Gr.1.