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COROMANDEL GROMOR SOUTH INDIA DERBY, Gr.1

By Major Srinivas Nargolkar (Retd.) | 26 Jan 2022 |


For a long time, the Guindy Classics did not figure in the plans of the outstation trainers. Things have changed in the last five years and today most outstation trainers keep a Guindy slot for some of their Classic hopefuls. So much so that the last five renewals of the South India Derby, Gr.1 have been bagged by them.

Trends (Last Five Years)

All the five winners were Bangalore based and of them two were having their first run at Guindy. Three favourites, two previous start winners, one filly (Born Queen) and one top rated runner (Prevalent Force) have been successful. The average field rating has been 63 and that of winners 67. Trainers Darius Byramji and Satish Narredu have had a brace of winners each as has jockey Suraj Narredu. Three winners have hailed from the Usha Stud. A field of ten usually assembles for the Starter's call.

Stand Out Contender

Kensington (Win Legend - Angelique) is the only Classic winner in the field. In fact, he has won two of them; the Deccan Colts' Championship Stakes, Gr.3 in September and the Bangalore 2000 Guineas, Gr.2 last month. In winning the latter race, he beat Evaldo, Southern Dynasty and Imperial Blue who oppose him again on Friday. His Hyderabad victory was even more significant for, from the lot he defeated, Zuccarelli, Angelico and Stockbridge have subsequently gone on to win a Classic. Both his wins have come at a mile but, as a full-brother to Angel Dust (Garuda Bangalore Derby, Gr.1) and Anjeze (Bangalore Oaks, Gr.2), his staying potential is very apparent. Their dam Angelique won the C.N. Wadia Gold Cup, Gr.2 over 2400 m. and she traces to the Aga Khan's celebrated mare Mumtaz Mahal. Kensington's grandam Nafazaka, was a half-sister to Salute Her (Castrol Bangalore St. Leger, Gr.2) who produced Forever Elegance (Stayers' Cup, Gr.1). With those antecedents, Kensington should not be found wanting in stamina and looks well set to complete a Classic hat-trick. S. John replaces S. Anthony Raj in the saddle. John has won fourteen Classics so far and ten of them have been for Arjun Mangalorkar.

Others

Each of the remaining seven runners has something to commend and, perhaps, more to discount so that it is difficult to pinpoint the most serious challenger. The connections of two outstation horses, Evaldo and Presidential, have shelled out a sum of Rs. 5 lakhs each as the final entry fee and, in absence of clear pointers, those two need to be looked at first.

The stallion Gusto, a pure sprinter, standing at Bishan Stud in Punjab has surprised many with his performance so far. One trainer who has supported him right from the start is Prasanna Kumar. Prasanna Kumar trained Knotty Ash, a member of Gusto's first crop, and he almost pulled off a huge upset by winning the Pune Derby, Gr.1. Subsequently, Knotty Ash came back to shorter distances. Now, Prasanna Kumar is pitching his inexperienced Evaldo (Gusto - Farrfesheena) in a Derby on just his third start. The trainer was in charge of War Hammer, an unbeaten winner of eight starts including the Kingfisher Ultra Indian Derby, Gr.1 and he obviously knows what he is doing. Evaldo made a winning debut just last month and later, on the Christmas Day, came out for the Bangalore 2000 Guineas, Gr.2. The winner Kensington and Evaldo were content to be at the tail-end of the field, they improved on the very outside on rounding the bend and fought out a stirring finish in which the camera gave the verdict to Kensington.

On the basis of that run, Evaldo is perfectly entitled to take on his conqueror again. The difference is that while Kensington is bred to stay, Evaldo is not. Gusto, owned by Highclere Racing Syndicate (Rock Sand) and trained by the senior Richard Hannon, was a Listed level sprinter who won once over seven furlongs and five times over six furlongs. Evaldo's dam Farrfesheena was earlier at Usha Stud where she produced the winners Way Out, Cataleya, Apna Time Ayega and Notoriety. Cataleya won a Gr.3 race over a mile and was third in the Golconda 2000 Guineas, Gr.2 while Apna Time Ayega has scored once 2000 m. One of Farrfesheena's foals abroad, Dr Finley, has won over staying trips and that offers a glimmer of hope to her connections of recovering the late entry fee. Akshay Kumar has just to get Evaldo's number in the frame to ensure that.

The other late entry -- Presidential (Phoenix Tower - Riyasat) -- has been put in by Pesi Shroff whose stable is breathing fire at the moment. Shroff has won each of the first three South India Classics previously but is still looking for his first Derby at Guindy. Presidential is almost as inexperienced as Evaldo and like Prasanna Kumar's colt has placed in a Classic for he was third to A Star Is Born and Zuccarelli at Mahalakshmi. Phoenix Tower has two Classic winners over 2400 m. -- Rochester and Euphrates -- while the dam Riyasat is a winner of HDIL Indian Oaks, Gr.1. Riyasat's best foal so far is Pioneer, a full-brother to Presidential. It is a coincidence that it was Pioneer who denied Knotty Ash the glory in Pune. Depending on how the race is run, Presidential has a better chance of getting the trip. He will be ridden by the stable jockey P.S. Chouhan

Shroff will also saddle Botero (Western Aristocrat - Verbier) who has two points in his favour. One, he has won over 2000 m. a distance over which none of his competitors have won. Two, he has also raced over the Derby distance. Both were Class IV handicaps and in the latter he finished only second to the five year-old mare Kamaria. He was leading midway up the straight and looking good but faltered in the final stages. His third dam Rahy's Serenade is one the most prolific mares in India who produced ten winners including seven black-type winners. Botero's dam did not win but is a half-sister to the Eveready Calcutta Derby, Gr.1 winner Bruckner but, by and large, most members of the immediate family have found the distance of 2400 m. a wee bit far. With Chouhan committed to Miracle, it appears as if Mr. K.N. Dhunjibhoy has booked P. Trevor to ride his Classic runners. Trevor has already triumphed on Teresita and Zuccarelli for him, rides the fancied Alicia on Thursday in the South India Oaks, Gr.2 before he mounts Botero on Friday. He will probably be on Teresita again on Sunday for the Golconda Derby, Gr.1

With three wins, Trust Bond (Crimson China - String Along) enjoys the highest rating, a rarity for a Mysore-based runner. He has no black-type and has not raced beyond a mile. His dam is a daughter of Alnasr Alwasheek who won the Golconda Oaks, Gr.2 so there is stamina on the dam's side. Still a maiden after eight starts, Southern Dynasty (Multidimensional - Set Aside), a half-brother to Set Alight, placed third to Miracle in the Golden Jubilee Deccan Derby, Gr.1 and to Kensington in the Bangalore 2000 Guineas, Gr.3. His last run in the South India 2000 Guineas, Gr.2, however, was so poor that it does not inspire confidence. Imperial Blue (Be Safe - Youre So Beautiful) was fourth behind Kensington, Evaldo and Southern Dynasty in Bangalore 2000 Guineas, Gr.2 and it is hard to see him overtaking all three of them on Friday. That leaves Bugsy (Ampere - Bee Quick). His sire is a son of Galileo -- no stamina issues there -- but his dam was a pure sprinter.

The Field

All the eight runners (average field rating 54) are either colts or geldings. There is one Classic winner (Kensington) and one maiden (Southern Dynasty). The only previous start winner is Kensington. Shroff has two runners. There isn't a single runner who is trained at Guindy; what a turn around !

PAST THE POST

The 1997 South India Derby was won by Ministerial in a thrilling finish by a short-head from Nobiletto. The winner clocked 2.33.6. Ministerial was later to win the Indian Turf Invitation Cup, Gr.1 at Bangalore in another nail-biter from Crown Treasure. The following year, Imperial Scholar won the South India Derby, Gr.1 clocking 2.49.2 and a trend was set. Between Imperial Scholar and Crown Princess in 2016, the fastest Derby at Guindy was in 2000 when Simply Unique returned 2.40.4 and the slowest in 2004 when Beyond The Stars took 3 mins 4.3 seconds to traverse the same distance.

Mull over those timings and you will understand why outstation horses avoided the Guindy Classics. In 2017, Salazaar, the first outstation winner in a long while, established a new Race Record, stopping the clock at 2.32.14. Some of the previous South India Derby winners from Imperial Scholar to Crown Princess would have not crossed The Monument when he went past the wire !