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The second race, The Tangaroa Handicap, saw the biggest upset of the afternoon as friendless Bravo Italiano from Robert Gowli’s yard was well ridden by nephew JS Gowli to stave off a strong challenge from Sugar N Salt. The last named was another Babu Singh mount. As he was drawn on the extreme outside, he took some time to position himself before the final run-in, otherwise he may have had a different story to tell.
Stablemates Arkhos and Trigance from Jasbir Singh’s yard, fought out a pulsating finish to the Consul Secret Handicap. At the wire, Arkhos, with Pawan Sharma astride, prevailed by a nose. Although, he was giving weight all round, top-weight Fly For Sure finished a good third.
Trainer Vikash Jaiswal has worked wonders with Brave Move after the latter moved to his stable from the leading outfit. Brother Vinay rode another cracker of a race to get the better of Andeana who was threatening to make it back-to-back wins over the Jaiswal ward. But the handicap had its say as Brave Move picked up a late gallop to down his adversary close home.
Palme Dor’s victory in the Royal Mantle Cup was truly unfathomable. The Shafiq Khan-schooled mare picked up her second seven-furlong sprint of the season. Apprentice Babu Singh egged the five year-old on as the hapless Adriano tried his best to bridge the gap. Though money came on Touch Of Magic before the start, he ran a lacklustre race.
After the turmoil of the afternoon, it was only fitting that fancied runners Ariela and Simply Perfect failed to deliver in the final event of the afternoon, The Kallied Handicap. It was in fact 12 year-old Golden Image from Richard Alford’s yard who made a start-to-finish affair of the mile trip. Argentina ran on to occupy the runner-up berth and may be worth keeping an eye on in the future.
