James Underwood
Issue No 04
Mar 28, 2006
RACING IN INDIA -
The 12f Gr.2 Wadia Gold Cup the previous week, was won by the Usha bred
Razeen
4-y-o Flareon, now trained by Padmanabhan in Bangalore.
RACING WORLD MAGAZINE 2006 February/March Issue
ROMANTIC LIAISON TRIUMPHANT IN THE INDIAN OAKS
The lady’s Derby as the Oaks is also known, was to be run. And eleven
fillies were all set to challenge the favorite, Desert Lightning, who had
just won the first Classic of the Mumbai season, the Indian 1000 Guineas. In
that race, the Kolkata challenger
Romantic Liaison got beat, but having been upstaged in that race, she
was obviously all geared up to make amends. The Vijay Singh trained filly
turned the tables when she, literally, ran away with the Dheeraj Arma Indian
Oaks Gr.1
All the Rage set the early pace with Romantic Liaison (Razeen –
Veena’s Pet) settling into second place. The order remained the same
until they turned for home, when jockey C Alford set Romantic Liaison
in action and the filly responded, taking the lead. Thundering Power tried
hard to catch up with the leader but ended three lengths behind the winner.
The Deepak Khaitan owned filly hung out in the straight, but did not cause
any interference and the won race in 2min 34.04 sec…..
Romantic Liaison will now take on the colts in the McDowell Indian
Derby – a race that promises to be an absolute thriller.
RACING WORLD MAGAZINE 2006 – April/May Issue
THE GOLCONDA DERBY STAKES BRIMS WITH HOPEFUL STARS
Until a month ago, he was not even remotely considered a Classic hopeful,
what with his credentials making him out as a fantastic handicapper; but
Star Hopeful (Razeen – Hablitzia) did himself and his connections
proud by hoisting his first term’s win in a Derby; the Golconda Derby at
Malakpet. It was indeed an improbable accomplishment for someone who seemed
an ordinary horse. All these factors did paint a negative picture of Star
Hopeful’s potential, but they were also indicative of the gelding’s
inherent staying prowess, for it is a fact that true stayers often endure
such difficult phases early in their careers. When the field into two
bunches of four each, with about seven lengths separating the two, it looked
as if the winner would come from the rear bunch as ………
Possibility was now turning into probability as the rear bunch caught up
with the rest on the curve and appeared to swing forward. But however much
they tried, they found
Star Hopeful and B Prakash too good to match. At one stage, Rajendra
appeared to have put Scintillating Skill in the front, but Star Hopeful
fought back on the rails to hold hers as well as Psychic Strength’s
challenge off, the latter who came with a flourish.
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