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| Apprentice Shiva Kumar guided Dinesh Pujar's Special Force to a pillar-to-post victory in Thursday's feature event at Mysore. The setting was a sprint race for horses in class II, and a full lot of a dozen starters reached the starting gates. Rajesh's mount Nectar Jewel was the rage in the betting rings and was backed down to odds-on favouritism. This seven year old had won his only start during the Mysore Main Season, and was reappearing after a gap of almost eight months. In the interim, he had done some brilliant track work and won a couple of barrier trials. The stable was confident about his chances. Special Force looked like his only threat and garnered stray support at 5/1. Special Force bounded out of the gates, and travelled easily in front. Nectar Jewel was equally comfortable while following close behind, and the two of them began to go away from the rest. The supporters of the favourite began to panic as Rajesh pulled out his stick and asked him for an effort. The response was lukewarm, and Nectar Jewel was seen shortening his strides. On the other hand, Special Force got stronger at the finish and ran away from the field. The third placed Place Her Well finished way behind the first two. Thursday afternoon was highlighted by the performance of horses hailing from the stables of trainer Kamath. Three of them posted impressive victories, while another two lost because of poor assistance from the saddle. Awesome Fighter posted a fine win while lifting The F B Sharma Memorial Gold Cup. This horse was making a bid to score a third successive time, as he had won twice at Bangalore prior to being relocated to Mysore. The four kgs claimed by apprentice Vijay came in very handy, as Awesome Fighter seemed to relish the light impost on his back. Favourite Brave Soldier came menacingly close near the winning post, but the early advantage proved to be decisive. Spark Of Symphony ended a close third, and this four year old should be earmarked for an early success. Jockey Mark returned after an injury layoff, and scored with Stornoway. In a very close finish, wherein four horses finished in a heap, Stornoway kept his neck in front of Exceptional, Spanish Crown and Run For Fame. The speedy Fire Brigade gave Kamath his treble for the day. Lesser known jockey R Ravi rode confidently, and raced his mount a handy third behind Easy Rider and Ambiens, before straightening for home. A tap or two thereafter saw this horse putting the issue beyond doubt. Bravo Bedford came with a long stretch run to push Ambiens into third place. Kamath's first timer Theworldismine missed narrowly, while failing to collar Darashah's Ohiyesa in a race for maiden three year olds. Gnaneshwar pushed on-money favourite Ohiyesa to the front nearing the two furlong post, and held on to his lead. Theworldismine, who was racing on the rails for most of the way, had to be switched out in the straight. Ravi tried to correct his outward drift and brought him with a re-run, but had to be satisfied with the second spot. He tried to reverse the result by lodging an objection on the grounds of interference, but the same was unanimously over ruled by the Stewards. Skyfleet came with a smooth run from the rear and took the third prize. Magical Spirit and Bridge Too far scored another double for trainer Rakesh. Both of them were public choices and were ridden by apprentice Madhubabu. Magical Spirit had scored on the opening weekend of the current season. She had impressed all concerned,including her trainer, by that victory. He chose to campaign her again within a week. Although she was racing in a higher class, Magical Spirit proved too good for Worth A Gold. The runner up was a couple of lengths shy at the wire, while the others ran detached from the first two. The concluding event saw Bridge Too Far giving a few anxious moments to her fans, before getting up in the final stages to put her neck in front of Boston Ranger. The runner up is showing signs of posting a win over a longer trip, and shall be too good to miss on such an occasion. Fancied Anoosheek ran a poor race, and she should be left alone from a betting perspective. |
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