The impending cyclone gave the city a miss, but nonetheless, brought with it a chill in the air and a light drizzle. The Bangalore imports must have loved the weather. Nevertheless, it was the local lot of runners who ruled the roost on Thursday.
Jockey Christopher Alford reached yet another milestone when he completed his third hat-trick of wins in as many days of the Calcutta winter season. Two of his winners (Alterity and Regal Connection) were from the stable of Vijay Singh while Farley Rodrigues-trained A'Ma Jaju was his other mount which saw the winner's enclosure.
Vijay's winning pair of three-year-old colts also fetched him a cup-double. While Alterity (Mr Mellon-Star Successor) had to be ridden flat out to stave of a strong challenge from Le Chaim to lift the Wandering Angel Cup, Regal Connection (Mr Mellon-Countess of Poland) lived up to his name with a superb victory in the six-furlong sprint for the RWITC Cup. Christopher Alford had the speedster in a box seat along the rails from the word 'go', while Cromwell called the shots. The favourite Star Team, from Daniel David's yard, was also handily placed on the outside. However, when the heat was on after the turning for home, the latter appeared to be struggling under the stick. He obviously did not relish the sharp scurry but will be a force to reckon with when he negotiates a longer trip.
Apart from the narrowly beaten Le Chaim in the Wandering Angel Cup, the impressive runner here was the fast-finishing Canterbury Rocks. The filly by Serious Spender out of Cyclonic could find her running shoes when tried over a longer distance.
Jockey Imran Chisty, who rode Canterbury Rocks, however, had a surprise package in the form of Regent Appeal. The colt lost out by a whopping five lengths while in receipt of 7.5 kg from Mystro during the monsoon season. His subsequent improvement took most of the knowledgeable crowd by surprise. Whether the beaten favourite Azureus would have turned the tables if his rider had not been declared an overweight of 2.5kg is a matter of conjecture. Mathematics says that he would have as the verdict was a length. That would seem to suggest that the stable was a shade overconfident.
Chisty had earlier ridden two other winners — Fragrant Meadow in the curtain-raiser and Razor Sharp in the Andreno Handicap. The retained rider of racing baron MAM Ramaswamy should be applauded for his effort atop the former. He urged the two-year-old filly to get the better of runaway stablemate Golden Celebration on the stride.
Talking of stablemates, a rarely seen objection by second placed Blood Rayne over Lusitania — the stable-and-ownermate of Patrick Quinn's winner Tip Toes —for interference, was overruled by the Stewards. The John Stephens-trained ward will be worth keeping an eye on.
