Trainer Pesi Shroff has put the analysts’ clan in a dilemma. If one ventures to analyse between Pesi the jockey and Pesi the trainer, if would be hard to conclude on which of the two roles is he better at! When it came to riding races, he was shrewd, disciplined, and aggressive for all to see. Now, as a trainer, he has scaled heights in a short span of time.

So without getting into the nitty-gritty of attempting to decipher his dual talent, suffice it to say that he comes about as a complete horseman. A true sporting professional! If there was one thing that would fetch him a percent over the cent-percent mark, it would be him becoming media savvy. His demeanour on the track is impeccable, off it too, but when it is comes to the media, I would have to tell you in hushed tones. Be that as it may, there is no denying the fact that Pesi is the man for the big occasions.

Out of the 20 races lined up for the Derby weekend, the Shroff stable had representation in 11 of them. He won five races over the weekend, secured close third and fourth spots in the Derby, and three other horses ended runners-up in their respective races. He also notched up a fantastic hat-trick with Attila, Elena and Picasso. So his performance graph for the Derby weekend would surely show an upward curve.

Attila (China Visit – Al Dente) won him the Antiquity Rare ‘Fusion of the Finest’ Cup, a six-furlong sprint that had 13 in the line-up. Needless to say, Attila was installed the firm favourite. It was a fiery fast race with Schnell darting ahead at a cracking pace. Attila was well in touch with the front group. Forever Young was chasing Schnell along with Highland Music. The rest were following closely. At the turn, Schnell pushed further and opened up a lead when Attila made a decisive surge forward. The Chetak Syndicate-owned filly had no trouble sailing clear and she galloped on gamely to win unchallenged. Flaming Arrow finished on with purpose to claim the second spot while Schnell put up a gritty fight to hang on to place money warding off Amore Mio.

Elena (Alnasr Alwasheek – Intuition) won the Whyte And Mackay Challenge, unchallenged! She was well prepared to thrill her connections on debut. Shooting zestfully off the blocks, Elena conquered every post on her way to an emphatic victory. At no point did any other contender even looked like providing a fight. Even hot favourite Silk Cut could not match her brilliance. She simply outclassed her rivals with complete authority and proved to be much better class. Speed is her forte and it will take a really fast horse to trouble her. She is a sprinter of high quality. For me, Elena is one filly to be backed till she loses. In her brilliance, even Silk Cut, the favourite and runner-up, seemed an ‘also ran’.

Lionwoods (Burden of Proof – Golfing) owned by Geoffrey Nagpal, could not have found a more opportune time to break into the winners’ league. Jockey Imran Chisty settled Lionwoods third behind the two greys Frost Fairy and Great White. Entering the straight, Frost Fairy persisted with her efforts and it took a while for Lionwoods to get past her. Once in the lead, Lionwoods kept the momentum going all the way. Lunar Quest and Forever Amber did make valiant efforts but made no impression of the Sanjay Kolse trainee. Lionwoods kicked away and won well. Starfall finished on fastest but was too late on the scene and had to settle for the second spot. Forever Amber, Lunar Quest and Frost Fairy finished too close to each other. Starfall is the one to note.

Cape Ferrat (Hurricane State – Royal Divine) defied the handicapper yet again en-route to scoring a fine hat-trick this season. Her three victories on the trot have come in three different classes as she started off with a win in class IV to notch up her latest in class II. Trained by rookie Shyam Habbu, Cape Ferrat is growing from strength to strength with each run. Our Fortune was the one to lead the field and Cape Ferrat was right up there. The pair entered the straight together and soon Cape Ferrat surged ahead. Ocean Wish and Bullet teamed up to topple Cape Ferrat and galloped on too close for Cape Ferrat’s comfort. The Dhunibhoy & Brar owned gelding proved her mettle staying clear of the fighting duo and warding them off convincingly to land the spoils. Aflatoon did well to force his presence in the frame, finishing just a head behind Ocean Wish. This was a good effort considering Aflatoon was at the tail-end of the field coming into the straight.

Harlamoff (Glory Of Dancer – Winning Spurs) was another one to delight the Shirke and Dhunjibhoy combine. Coming from MK Jadhav’s stables, Harlamoff forced her way from a bunch of close-knitted horses to storm into the lead approaching the distance post. Prakash then worked on her to sail away out of reach and soon the rest were left to pick the remaining placing. Bold Dancer, the tote favourite made a late appearance but could not stop the fast-finishing Dancing Dame from pegging him back for the second spot. Magical Mantra grabbed the last position in the frame.

Saddlers Rule (Brave Act – Queen’s Rule) ran a brave race and although he finished second to Kalinga Star on the track, he won the battle in the stewards’ room and was rightly awarded the race. Into the straight, Bemisaal was fighting for survival as Ocean Warrior stepped up next to him. Within seconds, Saddlers Rule and Kalinga Star stormed past them all and a gripping duel erupted. Kalinga Star failed to keep a straight course and drifted inwards, in the process leaning on to Saddlers Rule and taking him inward. They crossed the wire locked together, but there was no doubting that Saddlers Rule was hampered by Kalinga Star. It was one of the easiest decisions for the stewards to sustain the objection that Trevor lodged against Dashrath Singh and the Judge’s placing was reversed in favour of Saddlers Rule. Divine Majesty ended a notable third ahead of Ocean Warrior.

Dancing Money (Mr Mellon – Shirley Valentine) reproduced his Pune form and put in a spirited run to tick his win box on the famed Mahalaxmi track. Taking his winning tally to four was not too difficult for this DJ Surti-trained mare owned by MB Dubash, Mrs Najoo Bhiwandiwalla, Mrs Farida Singh and Mr Darius Surti. Sitting right up front just behind Midnight Club, Dancing Money ruled the homestretch with ease and tore away from the rest to win with a measure of comfort. Midnight Club just watched her surge ahead and Marudhara Ratan could only end a tame second.

Siooux Chief (Ontario – Ashwakrupa) unleashed a dazzling final furlong gallop to wallop his opponents in style. The Faisal Abbas-trained gelding owned by Mr Ajay Jalan stormed from nowhere to collar the front-running Fiery Fortune to coast to victory in the last 100 metres, outpacing Distinguished to register an easy victory in the end. Fluent Victory did well to grab the place money coming from behind to usurp the third place from Fiery Fortune. Pesi Shroff made a mark with a fine hat-trick while jockeys, Prakash, Ruzaan and Stephen Pasqueir scored a double each. The ‘horse of the day’ in my opinion, should go to Scarface for his miraculous win from a hopeless position and that is saying something considering Picasso and Elena displaying classy talents.