Indiarace.com - india's first & foremost horse racing portal

Foley and Prakash Score a Lucrative Hat-trick

By Pearcey | 18 Sep 2009 | MYSORE


Trainer R Foley leading Pleasuring (B Prakash Up), winner of The Mysore Race Club Gold Cup Div-I

The Robert Foley and B Prakash combination has dominated the racing scene at the Mysore Race Club for over a decade. Their horses are always fancied and they generally find their place at the top of the betting boards. The odds offered against them are usually cramped and the stable often complains about this scenario. The large contingent of horses comes down after the completion of the Ooty season with most of them having had easy runs during that period. Racegoers are generally clueless about their chances, and more often then not, have to rely on the moves in the bookmaker's ring. Friday's racing proved to be a difficult puzzle to solve. The odds against three prominent runners from this yard rose alarmingly, and yet, they ran and scored like "good things". The stable picked up both the trophies on offer this afternoon. The mile-long Chettinad Stud Gold Cup was annexed by Forever Mark, who retired as the easiest winner in the day's nine-event card. With money flowing in the direction of Spandau Ballet, the odds against the eventual winner rose to 8/1. The horse is known to be a sluggish starter, but there was no such problem today. With Saptashwa, Boston Ranger and Spandau Ballet setting a strong pace up front, Prakash was able to settle Forever Mark in mid-division, and the duo were able to bide their time till turning for home. The front group began to tighten and all of them began to show signs of fatigue. It was a pleasure to see Forever Mark appear on the wide outside and skip away from the others. He treated his opponents with total disdain and won by a widening margin from Spandau Ballet and Voice Of India. The upper division of The Mysore Race Club Gold Cup was the very next race. Pleasuring had been quoted at even-money all morning. Although this well-bred four-year-old was looking a picture in the paddock, she had very little support in the betting ring. The odds against her more than doubled at race time. Here again, Prakash occupied the box seat and decided to wait behind Vertex and Easy till well into the straight. Pleasuring responded nicely to her jockey's call thereafter, and lengthened her strides. She retired as a comfortable winner ahead of a hard ridden pair of Easy and Heroism. This happened to be the third leg of a hat-trick as the Foley- Prakash combination had scored earlier with Imperial Gate. It was a race for horses five years old and over. Colonel Duff was a firm favourite to win this event. With Suraj guiding his destiny, Colonel Duff was a trifle unlucky to buckle under pressure and lose to Imperial Gate. He ran a bit green at a crucial juncture and that seemed to make a vital difference to the final outcome. The two top jockeys at this centre treated those present in the stands to a brilliant finish. Suraj cornered his own share of limelight by steering two other public choices to popular victories. The first was astride Dhariwal's Angelfire. This filly had made a rousing start to her career before coming under a cloud. A reported setback in training had put the brakes on her progress. She had made three unsuccessful appearances in summer, and on each occasion had flattered to deceive. Angelfire used to lead into the straight and give up without a fight. Her recent track trials were brilliant. She was supported with gay abandon today, and she justified the favouritism in fine style. Suraj sent her to the front from the word "go", and she proved to be much too powerful for Showhorse and Top Romance. Angelfire can be expected to progress from her present mark. His victory astride Satish Narredu's Simply Phenomenal gave him his double for the day. This win was equally easy, since her main opponent was lethargic at the gates. Chronicle seemed to have left his galloping shoes at home. This runner finished at the rear end of this field. On the other hand, Simply Phenomenal wasn't hard pressed to keep Mister Trooper at bay. The two of them were almost a distance clear of a tired Careerist. For the second successive day trainer Bipin Salvi had reason to rejoice. He seems to have immense confidence in his horses, as he likes to gamble with ordinary mortals in the saddle. It was the turn of N Harsha today. The boy hadn't won a race in a real long time. Bold Request gave him an opportunity to do so, and the youngster seized it with both hands. The horse was slammed down from 10's to 3's and was good enough to deliver the goods. Bold Request was in front for most of the way, before Royal Hawk and Roanoke challenged him. A couple of backhanders from Harsha were enough to keep him going. To the delight of his camp, Bold Request held on to his lead and scored in a close finish. Britto's last outing winner Awesome Beauty put up another superb show and retired as the longest priced winner in the day's card. The betting in this sprint race was spread across Legendary, Jersey Pride, Lush Foliage and Needofthehour. The four runners were well matched on paper and a close finish was expected in this race. The finish was definitely close, but it was on unexpected lines. Two rank outsiders, namely Awesome Beauty and Noble Guest, came with giant strides on the wide outside and swept past a hapless Needofthehour. A stunned silence greeted the result of this race.