Leading trainer Irfan Ghatala made a big splash on a day Wolf 777 made their presence felt at the Bangalore Turf Club (BTC). The leading sports, gaming and entertainment group, sponsors of all the four winter classics including the blue riband of the season, the Wolf 777 Bangalore Winter Derby on Republic Day couldn't have asked for any better, the first classic, the Wolf 777 Bangalore 1000 Guineas producing a pulse-pounding finish, a solitary length separating the first four. The seven to one shot Victoria Punch from Irfan's yard piloted in resplendent style by top gun Trevor Patel emerged the best of her age and sex edging out Philosophy, a `neck' separating the two and Philosophy in turn beat the close second favourite Mirra by a short-head, while the nohoper Tough Cookie was only half-length behind Mirra in the classic finish. The winner had beaten Philosophy and Mirra earlier in the Mysore 1000 Guineas and the classy daughter of  Sanus Per Aquam, the leading stallion from  the Kunigal Stud Farm, repeated the act to the delight of her trainer, who spared no effort in his endeavour to record his second straight classic success on the champion filly.

The fact that she was offered (7/1) in the betting ring despite the fact that she had convincingly beaten Philosophy and Mirra, who topped the betting board, made it clear that most followers of form including the bookmakers thought that her Mysore win was only a flash in the pan. The star performer delivered another knock-out punch, while sending out a message loud and clear that her earlier effort was no fluke and she is in the elite circle.

Suraj Narredu guiding the fortunes of the lesser fancied last start winner  Triple Wish from Neil  Devaney's yard hit the front and set a decent pace in the mile long classic journey. Tough Cookie followed the leader, while the two market leaders, Philosophy partnered by Sandesh and Mirra piloted by Antony Raj chose to grace the wrong end of the field all through the backstretch.  The moment the two front runners shot their bolt at the top of the straight, Trevor moved Victoria Punch through the middle, while Sandesh chose to make his run on rail side and Antony Raj on the wide outside. Victoria Punch and Trevor streaked ahead in the final furlong and Trevor riding like one possessed gained the day, pegging back the belated effort of the fancied two in a thriller. While the connections of Victoria Punch lauded the effort of the top saddle artiste, the supporters of Philosophy were not happy with the performance of Sandesh on the runner-up. They made no secret of their opinion that Sandesh injudiciously chose to take a rough path and this cost Philosophy dear. But in this game where decisions are taken quick and fast in fraction of seconds, end results sometimes can be heart-breaking.

Earlier, Irfan had led in the second in demand at the betting ring, Tignanello who proved too good in the Linganamakki Plate run over a distance of nine furlongs. The winner piloted by Antony Raj looked a picture of fitness at the paddock parade and readily justified his looks, cruising home without unduly extending himself. The public choice Ripple N Storm from Prasanna Kumar's yard followed the winner home ahead of Banksy, who appears to have improved most and is one for the notebook.

In line for a treble, Irfan had two fancied contestants in the Premium Spirit Stakes, the overwhelming favourite Watchmystars and the four to one shot Imperial Blue. The latter piloted by Antony Raj made every post a  winning one, while the public choice only managed to finish third behind the runner-up Promise Kept. The winner is in good nick and is likely to register a hat-trick when saddled next.

Irfan apart, young Aravind Ganapathy cornered glory recording a fine double. Aravind first proudly led in Smithsonian in the opening event, the upper division of the Malaprabha Plate before Cat Whiskers from his yard won the juvenile event, the Ardent Knight Trophy in emphatic fashion. Smithsonian on the strength of his suggestive effort, third behind the winner Superlative in Pune rightly opened the favourite after the topweighted Starry Wind opted out of the race. But soon money came pouring in on the Pradeep Annaiah-trained Air Blast, hammered down from (5/2) to (11/10) in the betting ring, while Smithsonian drifted out in price and was freely available at (7/4) before the eight runners came under the starter's flag for the sprint trip. Smithsonian in the hands of Neeraj Rawal bolted in nice and easy, while Air Blast struggled and finished third, more than seven lengths behind the winner.

In the event for juveniles, Ruling Dynasty from Prasanna Kumar's yard garnered the maximum support on the strength of his pleasing performances on the trial track and the fact that Prasanna had won the two earlier juvenile events this season through Knotty Charmer and In Thy Light. Ruling Dynasty in the hands of leading pro Srinath failed to make it three out of three for Prasanna, finishing a tame third behind the ten to one shot Cat Whiskers and the runner-up Last Waltz. Neeraj Rawal who booted home Smithsonian partnered Cat Whiskers to share the riding honours with Antony Raj who recorded a double through Tignanello and Imperial Blue.

The principal added attraction, the Bangalore Turf Club Trophy run over a sprint on cards was a straight fight between the Pradeep Annaiah-trained Ascoval and Golden Oaks from Padmanabhan's yard. The former piloted by Srinath closed  favourite before the four runners stormed out of the gates. Golden Oaks and Ascoval called the shots all through the six furlongs trip before the Padmanabhan ward piloted by Sandesh got stronger close home to register a long over-due success. Ascoval again failed to justify favouritism much to the chagrin of his large supporters.

The six to one shot Chain Of Thoughts from Neil Devaney's yard partnered by promising apprentice jockey Shreyas Singh came up trumps in the concluding event, the lower division of the Malaprabha Plate run over a sprint. Rightly Noble from Pradeep's yard was strongly fancied to score but despite Srinath packing punch the public choice failed to match strides with the winner and had to settle for the second spot ahead of the topweighted Pastiche. Gold Gray from Sharath Kumar's yard was ridden to the ground by Sai Kiran, hence this effort of the grey gelding is best ignored.