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King of Hearts gets his due

By Sharan Kumar | 05 Aug 2005 | BANGALORE


King Of Hearts (Appu up) winner of the Governor's Cup (Gr.3) being led in by trainer Mr.Padmanabhan

King of Hearts swamped the opposition in the Gr.3 Governor’s Cup, the highlight of the concluding day’s Bangalore Summer Races to enable trainer Padmanabhan to end the season in a blaze of glory. The Harish Mehta owned King of Hearts was justly rewarded for all the hard work he put in as work partner to stablemate Holding Court this season and the ridiculous ease with which he won only served to highlight what he could have achieved had he been better exploited all these years. The five-year old King of Hearts, who moved into Padmanabhan’s stables at the start of the summer season, turned out in remarkable condition in the paddock parade and won his first graded race with consummate ease. Though King of Hearts can be exploited in terms races during the monsoon and winter season, it is possible that the son of Razeen may be used to keep company for Holding Court to prepare for the Indian classics at Mumbai. A trainer cannot put ability into a horse but what distinguishes a good trainer from the rest is the talent to get the horse to perform at the optimum level for a longer period of time and to ensure that the horse reaches the mark it is capable of. It is on this score that Padmanabhan rates as the very best in the business though this statement may not go down well in a field marked by intense rivalry and backbiting. Padmanabhan had one of the best seasons in his racing career, with two classic wins besides finishing second in the trainers’ championship behind Ganapathy who has had a vice-like grip over the trophy. Padmanabhan is not in the numbers game but the fact that he ended up with 19 winners is the best strike rate any professional could have hoped for. On a relatively lesser scale was the performance of new entrant to the sport, G. Nityanand who ended up with a haul of 9 winners from just 9 racing horses and a high percentage of runners earning stake money. Though Forever Elegance had not displayed the form of last winter, the daughter of Placerville was more fancied to win the mile and half race. King of Hearts, who served as a work horse for the more illustrious Holding Court, was also strongly supported to win though there was not enough data to support his claim. There was muted support for Full Speed though time and again, the son of Burden of Proof has cried hoarse about his inability to get longer trips as effectively as the mile, where he has few equals. Formidable Force led the field as the starter dispatched the field for the 2400 metres trip with The Zamindar and King of Hearts in close attendance followed by the rest in striking distance of each other. Approaching the final bend, Formidable Force dropped right back to the rear of the field and King of Hearts came through the middle on the inside of Full Speed to take charge. King of Hearts burst into the lead quite comfortably and jockey Appu was not required to use the whip more than once as he spared five lengths at the finish to top weighted Star of Windsor. Formal Invitation was third ahead of Forever Elegance who has clearly dropped form and a pale shadow of what she was last winter. Padmanabhan had a double for the day as Ranier edged out Imperialism in a thriller in the Leading Stud Cup. The duo battled all the way in the straight. The up and coming jockey Pradeep Chauhan out-rode his more experienced rival Appu while steering the favourite to victory. Diamond Caves was a long way third. Trainer Michael Eshwer had a horrid season as luck seemed to avoid him right through the season, with as many as 25 horses finishing second best in close finishes. After he lost in a pulse pounding finish on Imperialism, more frustration was in store for him as Splash of Class was edged out close home by Thursday Nite. Apprentice jockey T. Rahul could not get a good start on the favourite who was sluggish from the gates and then he had to circle the field to hit the front in the final furlong. However, jockey C.Alford, who enjoyed a glorious summer, got Thursday Nite to stretch out in the nick of time to get the better of the favourite. Alford, who is definitely on the upgrade, booted home three winners during the day as Swing Lucky won at the expense of a poorly ridden Sven in the day’s opener and Wild At Heart survived a scare from Maggie Thatcher in the concluding race of the day. Alford could be a jockey of the future if he curbs his tendency to celebrate before crossing the winning post because this habit has often seen him snatch defeat from the jaws of victory! Trainer Nityanand’s Time To Celebrate finally broke the jinx when winning the Champion Jockey Cup (Div.I) with a great deal of ease from Peakaboo and Winds of Fire. Forever Grande did not have the luck of the race as the gelding suffered bad interference at a crucial stage of the race. But this could not have made a material difference as Time To Celebrate was too good for the field. Eskimo Boy recorded an encore with consummate ease in the Champion Trainer Cup (Div I). Prakash who rode the winner thus clinched the Champion Jockey title with one point difference over Appu who however won the major plums during the season. More often than not, the tipsters have never got it right in the Leading Tipster Cup and it was not a surprise when long shot Ondhu Ondhu Ondhu won this event at nourishing odds from Custer. Favourite Pat On The Back did not enjoy the best of rides from apprentice Shahbuddin who ended the season on a blank note.