In his first appearance this season, Victor Hugo from Irfan Ghatala's yard finished an impressive second behind Emphatic, who won again in her next start . Victor Hugo in his next start performed like a dud finishing more than 10 lengths behind the winner Mindful. This pathetic performance from the Irfan trainee over a distance of 2000 metres was too bad to be true and it cost most punters dear, who had fancied the Irfan ward to score after his eye-catching first effort. Next competing in the Karnataka Police Cup in the higher category (60-85), run over a distance of 1800 metres on Saturday, Victor Hugo donkey-licked his four rivals, winning by a whopping 15-length margin without breaking a sweat. The verdict easily would have been 20 lengths had the in-form jockey G Vivek not tightened the grip on the vastly improved performer, who in his first start raced like a horse. In his second performed like a donkey and in the third, turned Cheetah, all in a span of 40 days. Move over PC Sorcar, Irfan Ghatala is the big new magician in the BTC campus, fitting turbo-charged engines on his wards and making what appeared a competitive race into a no contest. Well in this game where money changes hands fast and fine, if trainers become magicians than the sinners will turn saints and hoodwink the poor punters. Irfan is not alone. There are dime a dozen trainers who are not playing by the rules. Lacklustre dismal performance on one day and a vastly improved performance the next day defies logic. The mandarins of the club, who at first didn't know how to bell the cat, now are fearlessly cracking the whip on the habitual offenders and hopefully things will change in the months ahead, taking into account that no managing committee can clean the dirty, sticky mess overnight. 

This week the Stipes and Stewards after an enquiry passed an order to treat trainer GY Rajesh Babu as a disqualified person from 28 July 2025 to 28 June 2026 for contravention of rule 202 pertaining to the difference in weight in respect of his charge Adelanto. It may be recalled that Adelanto on race day weighed 12 kilos more than the weight recorded on acceptance day. Next the stewards suspended jockey Rajesh Kumar for six months for his unsatisfactory riding on Lauterbrunnen and fined trainer Narayan Gowda Rs, 50,000. 

MR Singh was fined Rs,10,000 for inconsistent pattern of running of his charge Mystic Charm and Narayan Gowda was fined with a similar amount for the improved performance of Glaze. The men in charge caught and fined the big fish, Prasanna Kumar and Pradeep Annaiah. It is also learnt that a couple of other trainers are also in line for suspensions for improved performances of their wards in the weeks ahead. 

Now back to racing, the principal added attraction, the Dr.KM Srinivasa Gowda Memorial Cup was claimed by the favourite Scent Of Rain from the stables of Sulaiman Attaollahi. The winner, who had let down large following in her last essay hit the front the moment the 10-runners came under the starter's flag and never let the initiative slip, providing the trop pro Trevor Patel an arm-chair ride to success. Lesser fancied Vibrant  Queen followed the winner home, while the Satish Narredu schooled Husanara back after a four-month lay-off performed below par.

On a day a thunder shower forced the conductors of the game to postpone the final race and include it as the first event on Sunday, the five to one shot Reiko from Pradeep Annaiah's yard made a winning appearance, coming up tops in the Yeravada Stud Plate run over a distance of seven furlongs. The Altamash schooled Chardikala finished second ahead of Forest Fragrance, while the on-money favourite Aquastic from Sulaiman's stable shockingly failed to even save money in place. 

This season many favourites from MR Singh's yard have failed to justify favouritism for more reasons than one and one more made the list. She's So Beautiful on the strength of her suggestive effort in her last essay was rightly fancied to score  in the Bold Gesture Plate. But the on-money favourite disappointed her supporters, never in the hunt to earn a winning bracket. Ten to one long shot Golden Glory from Satish Narredu's yard made every post a winning one pegging back Totally Epic. Jully caught the eye while finishing a creditable third and is one for the notebook. 

The Shoban Babu schooled My Solitaire finally earned her long pending winning bracket, coming up tops in the Amazing Grace Plate run over a distance of seven furlongs.  The five to one shot beat the consistent Flamingo Dream from Inayathulla's yard, who now has finished second in his last four starts. Embosom from trainer Lokanath Gowda's yard garnered the maximum support, but after being favourably placed at the top of the straight found the winner My Solitaire and Flamingo Dream too hot to handle in the final furlong.