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MONTEVERDI DOES AN ENCORE

By Epsom Ace | 01 Mar 2023 | KOLKATA


Trainer Vijay Singh leading Monteverdi (Hindu Singh up), winner of The Wolf777 Calcutta St. Leger

The Wolf 777 Calcutta St Leger – the last and longest classic of the season – proved beyond doubt that Monteverdi is the best stayer in his age group. The son of Roderic O’Connor out of Arabelle, from the yard of Vijay Singh, handed highly rated stablemate Leonardo his second defeat within the space of a month. If the last victory was hard-fought, this triumph was anything but that. Setting an early slow pace under a warm sun, Hindu Singh atop Monteverdi controlled the race to a nicety. Finding the pace too gentle for his liking, Suraj on Leonardo shot ahead near the half-way mark and brought the field into the straight. However, Monteverdi came back at him in the home run to win quite comfortably from a late-finishing Magneto.

In a small card of six races, trainer Vijay Singh led in four winners. He set the ball rolling with recent import Only You (Roderic O’Connor-First and Only One)in the seven furlong race for The Astrodance Handicap. The five-year-old mare was expertly handled by Suraj Narredu who settled her well in sixth slot before making his run on the wide outside. Two horses bolted in the race and they had to be withdrawn. These were Makhtoob and Mezcal.

Vijay next led in the crack sprinter Raisina Star in the race for Cameron Handicap. The filly by Top Class out Malakaye Ziba seems destined to win in the highest class after this facile victory in the hands of Suraj. From being a front-runner in her younger days, Vijay has transformed her into a sprinter in the ‘Agnostic’ mould. She seems quite capable of winning from any point in the race.

Yet another feather in the cap of the champion trainer was the victory of the filly Beautiful in the 2000 metres race for The Robin Hood Handicap. Sired by Speaking Of Which out of Ice Beauty, the filly lapped up the extra 400 metres after her narrow victory over a mile in a ‘No Whips’ race. Akshay Kumar got a chance ride today as Dasrath was declared unfit to ride and Akshay did not disappoint. The favourite Prosperous Prince was a bit of a disappointment as he ended up a tame third.                    

Trainer Vikash Jaiswal did well to lead in a double with the aged Script and the enigmatic Sporting Trainer. Akshay Kumar on seven-year-old Script (Whatsthescript-Shanlikya) rode a forward race and quite easily staved off the challenges from a lacklustre Hunan and an equally unimpressive Footprints – both four-year-olds. Sporting Trainer (Chinese Whisper-Mount Rushmore) brought the curtain down with a thumping seven-length victory over Our Choice.