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The successful pair of Bipin Salvi and Ladjadj Stephane continued their domination of the local turf. They combined effectively to score a fine treble, and at the end of the day, were seen heading their professional tallies. The scorecard of Stephane made impressive reading. He has won astride seven of his eleven mounts this season, and impressed all concerned by his skills in the saddle. The three victories were scored with Aspiring Seven, Master Strategist and Winning Tale. While Aspiring Seven and Winning Tale won with a late surge in the straight, Master Strategist had little problem in making every post a winning one. Master Strategist was chased for most of the way by the well-supported Happiness, but once Stephane released his grip on the leader, the race was over. The heavily whipped Happiness could do no better than finish a faraway second, ahead of Looking To Luck and Much More.
Four year-old Winning Tale was given a hefty penalty for her easy victory on the second day of this season. She had shown that she was capable of much better, and was accordingly supported to the exclusion of her rivals. Stephane was lucky to stay out of trouble in the early stages of this race. A rare accident saw Alejandros and Rain Man dropping their riders. The half-money favourite was steered to stay away from this collision, and was seen improving her position. Winning Tale came with a smooth run towards the centre of the track, and scampered away from Season's Greetings and River Glory. The last-named ran a forward race, and is the one for your notebook.
Bipin and Stephane's attempts to score a fourth linker were thwarted by Kishore's Secret Command. Bipin's Cafe Coffee had given indications of returning to his winning form by ending a close fifth in his previous start. A positive switch in the saddle, and some good trackwork in his morning trials, was good enough for the stable to support his chances. The three wins earlier in the afternoon, heightened their confidence. In a strange turn of events, Cafe Coffee was backed down to odds-on favouritism. Top weighted Dare Don and Secret Command fought for the early lead and raced clear of the others. They kept going steadily and did not allow any of the others to come close to them. After a brief duel in the last furlong, Secret Command managed to get his neck in front of Dare Don. Cafe Coffee rallied on the rails to finish a fair third.
Trainer Monappa completed a double for the afternoon by winning the last race of the day. After Cationic in the day's feature, it was Time For All who produced a strong gallop through the middle of the field and won comfortably. Darashah-trained Real Magic was a strong favourite in this race, as the speedy filly was considered to be superior to her opponents. She darted out of a wide draw and went to the front. She was chased by Green Vision, True Force, Time For All and Place Her Well. The order remained the same till the runners came towards the distance post. Two things happened at this stage. Real Magic felt the pressure and stopped in her tracks, while Time For All made use of a lucky opening and darted to the front. The latter continued to get stronger and won with a measure of comfort. She was followed by Place Her Well and Green Vision. An official announcement confirmed that the favourite Real Magic had burst her blood vessels during the running of this race.
The only other race in the day's card saw the eclipse of Monappa-trained Lotus Pond. A huge downpour during the running of this race could be attributed to the flop of this favourite. Although Lotus Pond was racing after a gap of almost seven months, the punters refused to look beyond her. She was reported to be in pink of condition, and her chances to win today were "very bright". The low-weighted Chief De Mission galloped away to the front and maintained his hold on the proceedings till the very end. Gaurav Sapra made free use of the whalebone on the Dinesh Pujar trainee, and rode him confidently. Ashhad Asbar made a feeble effort in the straight, but Lotus Pond was reluctant to oblige. She narrowed the gap with the leaders, but all she could manage was to finish a close third behind Tina's Triumph. Lotus Pond, who looked a bit rusty today, will be a different proposition in her next start.
