Universal favourite and star filly Miracle faced her first bad day at office and although it took a while for her loss in the Kingfisher Ultra Indian Derby (Gr1) to sink in, the triumph of her stablemate Zuccarelli was not shocking. Yes Zuccarelli had taken five lengths plus beating from Miracle not too long ago in the Golden Jubilee Deccan Derby (Gr1) at Hyderabad In October last, yes, A Star is Born came from behind to beat Zuccarelli in the Arion Horse Company Indian 2000 Guineas (Gr1), but what mattered was the big game ability and temperament over the testing 2400 meters distance. Zuccarelli displayed impeccable staying potential and proved that on the stamina quotient, he had what it takes. At least on the big day and in the manner he outclassed the high profile duo Miracle and A Star is Born, Zuccarelli took one’s breath away in the Kingfisher Ultra Indian Derby (Gr1) on Sunday.

While trainer Pesi Shroff had fine-tuned his two major weapons in Miracle and Zuccarelli perfectly, it was undoubtedly his better staying prowess that saw Zuccarelli through. Jockey P Trevor played the perfect partner to Zuccarelli and his handling of the new champ was flawless. He settled Zuccarelli early and let the gelding get into the groove at his own leisurely pace, way behind the pacemaker Souza for most of the journey and Chopin who had chased the winner right from the start.

The climax began when they turned for home. Souza ran out of gas and slipped backward. Chopin assumed command and built a good lead for himself, entering the straight with a cushion of about seven lengths. All eyes were on Miracle as she inched forward to be in a good position in third with Royal Command in second. Zuccarelli was spotted cruising his way and catching up with Miracle without burning any fuel. A Star is Born was already in top gear with about two furlongs to go.

Zuccarelli made a smooth transition from auto-pilot to manual effort in the hands of Trevor. The top-notch jockey pressed the button and Zuccarelli went ‘Boom!’ in a flash. He picked up like a mean machine and was out of bounds within strides. He covered up the big lead that Chopin had accumulated effortlessly and was on song right through the business end of the homestretch. A Star is Born, with another ace jockey Suraj Narredu, tried everything possible and although his effort was near-perfect, Zuccarelli left no chance for his rivals and bagged the coveted race without coming under any threat whatsoever. A Star is Born finished a good second and it’s never really a disappointment finishing second to an incredibly great performance. Chopin's effort was worth its weight in gold. He too ran a remarkable race, sitting up in front and then lasting out all the way. It is no mean task beating Miracle by nearly seven lengths! His connections would indeed be happy with his praiseworthy effort.

“This is indeed a memorable landmark for me personally,” said a jubilant Trevor. “It was in the (Kingfisher) Bangalore Derby that Zuccarelli showed a lot of class and also gave me confidence in his staying abilities.” Asked to compare the big loss to Miracle at Hyderabad, Trevor said, “He didn’t get a cover in that race and he could not wait long enough. Besides, he is much improved now and was less experienced then. In Bangalore I got the cover and that gave him a lot of reserve fuel in the straight. The same happened today, he was relaxed right through and I was brimming with confidence with the feel he gave me around the turn. I saw Miracle not accelerating as well as she does, and I had a slight upper hand over A Star is Born in the straight. The rest was not too difficult. Zuccarelli did everything right.” Trevor was particularly delighted as his daughter Dhanaira, a toddler, was on her first visit to the racecourse. Landing his first Indian Derby success in her presence was something sensational for him and he even blew her a kiss across the turf while passing the winning post. Little personal gestures that would stay etched in the memory for a lifetime!

Karthik trained Juliette (Musketier – Gimmesumsugar, Sohna Stud) recorded her ninth victory with a fine display of speed in the homestretch to beat top notch duo Forest Flame and Alluring Silver with ease. Jockey C S Jodha kept her off the pace for most of the 2000m journey as Successor made all the early pace leading them into the homestretch.

Successor did not last long and was soon overtaken by Forest Flame and then Alluring Silver. Juliette made rapid progress past the 800m marker and was in a close fourth position into the straight. Forest Flame was in command past the 300m with Alluring Silver working hard to stay in contention. Juliette was eating up ground and launched an all-out attack on her two main rivals. She whizzed past them in a trice and stormed ahead nearing the distance post to seal the issue in the final furlong, working up a steaming finish to win the Zavaray Poonawalla Eclipse Stakes of India (Gr2) by an impressive four and a half lengths. Forest Flame ended second well clear of Alluring Silver.

Pesi Shroff Trained Supernatural (Multidimensional – Psychic Light, Usha Stud) found himself in front and jockey PS Chouhan had to hold him back even as he pulled ahead to lead the field. Mufaza and Last Wish followed him a couple of lengths back, then came O Hansini, Dear Lady and Shabelle at the tail end. Once in the straight, while the others were off the bridle and trying hard to catch up, Supernatural was going hard-held until past the distance post. It was only in the last 150m or so that Chouhan started riding him out and even gave a couple of cracks. Supernatural, taking the cue, sped further away to increase his lead and win by a healthy margin of three and a half lengths. Last Wish finished a decent second, while Shabelle improved considerably to finish third well ahead of O Hansini.

Malesh Narredu trained Giant Star (Excellent Art – Sweeping Star, Poonawalla Stud) was ably ridden by jockey Neeraj Rawal timing his run to a nicety. They were all huddled closely as Petronia led them into the straight with Victorious Sermon and Sultan Suleiman right behind. Cosmic Ray cruised ahead to join the front runners and shot past them. All along, Giant Star was waiting to get enough room to make his move and he got the clearance when Cosmic Ray surged to the front and took charge. Cosmic Ray accelerated well and went a couple of lengths clear of the field past the distance post and it looked like she would make it all the way. That was not to be as Giant Star picked up speed with every stride and started gaining on Cosmic Ray with just about 100m left to run. The top weight and the bottom weight were level at the shadow of the winning post and Giant Star being the faster of the two, he surged past to carve out a narrow half-length victory. Grand Accord, as he has done so often, rose from the rear to finish a good third, beating a bunch of the brigade close home.

Emperor Roderic (Roderic O’connor – Mine Forever, Villoo’s Greenfield) who had finished a decent third on his debut about four weeks back, benefitted with that experience and was a lot more sharp on the day as he bagged the BK Rattonsey Memorial Maiden Multi-Million with a determined finishing gallop.

Snowfall led them into the race with Balenciaga struggling to keep up. Dexa moved up strongly even as Emperor Roderic made his way through between the two. Dexa did look good for a while, but jockey Umesh urged Emperor Roderic effectively to get him going without much use of the whip. Emperor Roderic galloped strongly past the distance post and sailed further ahead from Dexa to clinch victory by just over a length. Dexa did well for a first run grabbing the second place well ahead of early leader Snowfall.

Dallas Todywalla trained Sky Fall (Leitir Mor – Classic Sky, Poonawalla Stud) picked up her third career win in the opening race of the day, the play.rwitc.com Million. Jockey Neeraj Rawal settled behind leader Dilbar with Spring Groove, Impermanence on the outside. Close behind were favourite Columbian, Pokerface and Red Carnation.

Once into the straight, Dilbar put up brave resistance leading them past the 400 before Sky Fall started to challenge her approaching the distance post. Spring Grove was there but could not muster well enough. Columbian started to warm up a tad too late, but Sky Fall picked up well in the final furlong and sped ahead to build up a handy lead. Sky Fall kept the momentum going and even though Columbian covered a lot of ground towards the finish, all he could do was cut the margin down. Sky Fall won by a length and a half to spare from Columbian. Spring Grove just managed to peg Dilbar back for the third spot.

King’s Best (Leitir Mor – Grey Allure, Poonawalla Stud) was another one to improve on his debut run and he fought hard to achieve his maiden success on his second outing.

Jockey TS Jodha darted to the front with King’s Best and galloped at a steady pace, settling down nice and quick. Hooves of Thunder chased the leader with Fortunate Son close behind; O Kanhaiah came next with Chat and Sadler’s Legacy detached last until the turn.

King’s Best quickened well on turning for home and had a handy lead. Hooves of Thunder started to close-in, while Fortunate Son too was beginning to warm up. Past the distance post, King’s Best was ridden out persistently and the Altaf Hussain trainee never slowed down. Fortunate Son gathered momentum and made a last ditch effort in the final fifty and although he was finishing better than even King’s Best, the latter held on to win by a neck. Fortunate Son returned a gallant second. Hooves of Thunder ran on to finish third, while Sadler’s Legacy improved towards the finish to complete the frame.

The Awakening (Multidimensional – Winds of Fortune, Usha Stud) added to his solitary win with a splendid effort, warding off a stiff challenge from favourite Superleggera and the fast finishing Kinnara in the concluding race of the day.

Hitting the front right from the start, The Awakening settled well and had a handy lead coming into the straight. Jockey Yash Narredu, who knows the gelding well, waited long enough before urging him on. The Malesh Narredu trainee responded well and worked up good speed, picking up well approaching the distance post. Superleggera started to close-in, but Yash rode out astutely to stay ahead all the way past the post. Kinnara was a tad too late, but covered a lot of ground to end a noteworthy third alongside the winner and the runner-up.

For the professionals, trainer Pesi Shroff saddled a fine treble, while trainer Malesh Narredu and jockey Neeraj Rawal scored a double each.