The Santosh S Lad Mysore Dasara Sprint Championship provided an opportunity for Diamond Hunter to prove ,that at the moment, he is almost unbeatable over sprinting distances in this part of the country. The feature event in Wednesday's card was sponsored by a keen and sporting owner, and had a big purse awaiting the winner. Fifteen of the top sprinters based at Bangalore and Mysore accepted to face the starter. Woman On Top, Lady One, Diamond Hunter and Polar Wolf were amongst the highest rated horses in the field, and were expected to fight out a keen finish. Lady One is endowed with blistering speed and her connections were hopeful that she would run away from the others. Woman On Top had beaten a similar set of horses , at almost the same weights in a seven furlong event held more than a month ago. She had made all the running on that occasion, and was reported to have improved after that race. Diamond Hunter was amongst the beaten lot on that occasion, but then, his recent form over 1200 metres was almost impeccable which made him a frontline contender to win on Wednesday. Polar Wolf had run a close second in his last start and the presence of Prakash in the saddle gave an indication of his chances. The race began with a lot of jostling as jockeys tried their best to take advantageous positions in the early stages of this prestigious event. Lady One stayed out of trouble, as she was too speedy and went straight to the front.She was followed by Rare And Precious, Kingdom Of Heaven, Eona and Polar Wolf while the others were racing in close order. Woman On Top suffered at the start and found herself in third last position. Diamond Hunter was also caught in the midst of a tightly packed field and had to race thereabouts as they straightened for home. Lady One shot her bolt thereafter and allowed Rare and Precious to take over the running.Polar Wolf, Aurelian and Diamond Hunter moved strongly from the rear, and were involved in an intense fight for supremacy. Woman On Top began to make up ground on the leaders and suddenly found a wall of horses in front of her. Jockey Harish had to pull her out, and in doing so, lost some precious time. In the meanwhile, Appu guided Diamond Hunter through a wide opening and gave him his head. The chestnut horse responded beautifully and stretched away for an impressive victory. Polar Wolf, Aurelian and Woman On Top finished in a heap and were separated by the camera to finish in the above order. Lady One faded out to finish in the ruck. This was Diamond Hunter's fourth win in his last five starts. All these wins have been achieved in the highest Class and over his favourite distance of 1200 metres. The only time he lost in this period was over a longer trip. Michael Eshwar has done very well with this well bred horse. Not taking anything away from his victory, it needs to be mentioned that Woman On Top was an unlucky runner in this race. Jockey Harish has been riding with a lot of success in recent months. He rode one of his poorest races on Wednesday. Woman On top was a victim of early interference, poor positioning in the backstretch, crowding at the bend and traffic problems thereafter.Harish did very little to improve her chances. Inspite of all this, the game filly finished within a couple of lengths of the winner.Woman On Top is in good form and should be followed in the early part of the Bangalore Winter Season. The other important event during the afternoon was the running of The Sanctity Trophy. This mile event was split into two divisions. It was no surprise that Robert Foley's charges Royal Strider and Star Millionaire were installed as favourites in their respective races. Royal Strider was bidding for a hat-trick, while Star Millionaire was trying for an encore. Both these horses were unable to extend their winning streaks. The upper division was annexed by Chilly Wind, who came with a long stretch run and sailed away from Fantabulous Prince. Royal Strider got up in the last few strides to pip Symbol Of Speed and take the third spot. The other division saw a resolute performance from Snob Value. This five year old was able to win a race over a mile for the first time in his career. He came on the wide outside and lowered the colours of the favourite Star Millionaire. Red Mustang finished a disinterested third. Apart from the abovementioned failures, the Foley stable had three popular winners in a long card of nine races framed for the day. Humble Guy made mincemeat of his hapless opposition, and justified the short price quoted on him. Rising Fame had to be ridden out to hold Ciampino at bay. The latter was a victim of interference near the bend, but for which, he would have finished much closer to the winner. Ciampino can win in similar company in the near future. The treble was completed in the last race of the day. Command was installed as a short priced favourite in this event. With a late surge of betting on Padmanabhan's Stormy River, the odds against the favourite began to expand. The race itself witnessed Stormy River taking over the running near the 500 metre marker and leading into the straight. Prakash was a picture of confidence on Command and took some time to essay his challenge. The response was immediate as Command lengthened his strides and ran away from Stormy River.The two of them were a distance clear of the rest. Command finally broke his jinx and entered the winner's enclosure. He had lost his first start in the Steward's room and on the second occasion had to be withdrawn after getting stuck in the starting gates. Incidentally, all three winners from Foley's yard were partnered by champion jockey B Prakash. A pair of three year olds ,Gris Rapide and Super Spear, were able to win a race for the first time in their careers. Gris Rapide won the day’s opener with a start-to-finish effort. He was lucky to hold on from a late finishing Mudeer Power. Super Spear won a Class B event over a long trip of nine furlongs. Her trainer decided to put a pair of blinkers on her, and this seems to have worked in her favour. Super Spear led at the final bend, and kept responding to Appu's urgings. The winning post came to her rescue as she lasted out to win in a photo from Live It Up. This was win number two for Appu, who shared the day's professional honours with Foley and Prakash.