Jacqueline carries sea of expectations
Last year Set Alight by all accounts looked a cinch in the McDowell Indian Derby but the super star got beat by the most unlikely horse in Antonios. This year her stablemate Jacqueline enjoys a much exalted position for the simple reason that she has recorded three smashing wins in the Indian classics thus far. She made her stablemate Astral Flash look pretty ordinary when winning on tight reins, with her jockey Richard Hughes not moving a muscle. He merely showed the filly the route that she should take.
Is Jacqueline infinitely superior to Set Alight? The answer would be an overwhelming yes if one were to put this question in a poll but if one were to argue logically, one may arrive at a different conclusion.
Set Alight won the Kingfisher Derby by a distance and in record time, making the opposition legless in the final furlong. She then won the Indian 1000 Guineas and the Ramanarian Ruia Trophy without coming under pressure. And she went into the Indian Derby with no worthwhile opponent in sight till Antonios emerged as a bolt from the blue to dwarf her brilliance.
This year, the scenario is drastically different. Jacqueline was beaten by Aboline by a short head in the Kingfisher Derby, the late dash of daughter of King Charlemagne falling short by a whisker. At that point of time, everyone thought that Jacqueline was a good horse but not the way she is being rated now. Jacqueline beat the third placed Astral Flash by six lengths in the Derby while on the two other occasions that she beat the latter in the Indian classics, the verdict has been less. But what has added weight to the performance was the fact that her jockey could afford to relax the filly in the rear and then use the sparkling acceleration of the filly to good effect without apparent effort on the part of both.
When queried about how much he had in hand when he won the Oaks, Richard Hughes said that he had ``loads’’. But then it is difficult to quantify it by lengths. Will the filly produce the same sparkling acceleration in the Indian Derby which is bound to test both stamina and speed to the hilt given the quality of the field? If one has an answer, then the Indian Derby ceases to be an exciting proposition.
The Derby distance of 2400 metres has always seen the best fall by the way side quite often due to error of judgment on the part of the jockey or traffic snarls associated with a race of this nature. The best argued theories have often been thrown into the dust bin due to the vagaries of this race which puts immense pressure on people connected with champions as well as those who ride them.
Not since 2000 has a favourite won this coveted race of Indian racing calendar. Not even the great Mystical. Smart Chieftain was the last favourite to win and by strange coincidence the horse was ridden by none other than Richard Hughes who once again finds himself on a favourite who looks seemingly invincible.
Pesi Shroff who has won maximum of Indian Derbys as a jockey says that if he were to make a choice among his five horses that are running in the Derby, he would have preferred to ride Jacqueline. And this is only to be expected because Jacqueline has shown precocious speed, maintained her form during the Bangalore Summer Season and then expanded on her performance capabilities at her home centre.
Bruckner may have won the Calcutta Derby in record time but then he beat horses which didn’t trouble any of the horses which finished among the first six in the Golconda Derby last week.
Onassis is a fast improving horse who has won thrice during the season in impressive fashion but in everyone’s reckoning the race may have come too soon for him. He has a lot of catching up and he can only be classified as a horse which can upset if the fancied runners fail for one reason or the other. Astral Flash has very few career wins to her credit and interestingly, jockey Chris Hayes has chosen to ride Star Alliance who was a well beaten horse in the Bangalore Derby at the expense of Astral Flash. Does he have a poor opinion of Astral Flash? If the jockey is blessed with good judgment, his choice of Star Alliance itself may somewhat dampen one’s enthusiasm about Jacqueline. But then Chris Hayes may not be the best of judges at this point of time though he is a star in the making as far as jockeyship is concerned.
Among the other Mumbai horses, Native Knight who is still to win a race is being touted as an exciting prospect. Trainer Narendra Lagad believes that Native Knight is a late maturing horse and he is peaking at the right time and the Derby could be the place where he would showcase his undoubted talent. Native Knight’s chances of win in the Derby could be put in the category of day dream coming true!
This brings us to a truly exceptional horse which is Becket. The son of Hawk Wing out of Boiling River has won all his four races in impressive fashion. He has the attitude of a champion and he is not always content with just beating the opposition. He simply wants to demolish the opposition. Despite the many niggles, he has bounced back each time with a stunning performance. He has proved his versatility by winning on three different surfaces. He graduated from a seven furlong trip to a mile and half race in the manner of a true champion.
Trainer Padmanabhan always said from the day Becket set foot on the track, that he had a champion in his yard. Last year, he came for the Mumbai season but suffered a setback which kept him out of action for the entire winter season. Becket is a big made horse who has an amazing turn of foot. This will be for the first time that Jacqueline will be meeting a horse of the caliber of Becket. Padmanabhan says that Becket has traveled well and taken his hard race at Bangalore well though he is quick to emphasize that one cannot underestimate Classerville who has improved by leaps and bounds after his Golconda Derby second behind Arabian Prince in record timing.
Since Becket has the hall mark of a true champion, he is the one horse that Jacqueline will not be able to pass easily. Jockey Richard Hughes remarked that Becket was easily the best looking horse that he has seen in India. Becket has in him to convert the looks into performance. Owner Haresh Mehta was candid enough to say that the only threat for Becket is the horse himself. Becket always tends to outperform his physical maturity but now that he has furnished into a handsome colt, this should not bother him.
For those looking for a match for the pretty filly Jacqueline, there is no better one than the handsome Becket!
Is Jacqueline infinitely superior to Set Alight? The answer would be an overwhelming yes if one were to put this question in a poll but if one were to argue logically, one may arrive at a different conclusion.
Set Alight won the Kingfisher Derby by a distance and in record time, making the opposition legless in the final furlong. She then won the Indian 1000 Guineas and the Ramanarian Ruia Trophy without coming under pressure. And she went into the Indian Derby with no worthwhile opponent in sight till Antonios emerged as a bolt from the blue to dwarf her brilliance.
This year, the scenario is drastically different. Jacqueline was beaten by Aboline by a short head in the Kingfisher Derby, the late dash of daughter of King Charlemagne falling short by a whisker. At that point of time, everyone thought that Jacqueline was a good horse but not the way she is being rated now. Jacqueline beat the third placed Astral Flash by six lengths in the Derby while on the two other occasions that she beat the latter in the Indian classics, the verdict has been less. But what has added weight to the performance was the fact that her jockey could afford to relax the filly in the rear and then use the sparkling acceleration of the filly to good effect without apparent effort on the part of both.
When queried about how much he had in hand when he won the Oaks, Richard Hughes said that he had ``loads’’. But then it is difficult to quantify it by lengths. Will the filly produce the same sparkling acceleration in the Indian Derby which is bound to test both stamina and speed to the hilt given the quality of the field? If one has an answer, then the Indian Derby ceases to be an exciting proposition.
The Derby distance of 2400 metres has always seen the best fall by the way side quite often due to error of judgment on the part of the jockey or traffic snarls associated with a race of this nature. The best argued theories have often been thrown into the dust bin due to the vagaries of this race which puts immense pressure on people connected with champions as well as those who ride them.
Not since 2000 has a favourite won this coveted race of Indian racing calendar. Not even the great Mystical. Smart Chieftain was the last favourite to win and by strange coincidence the horse was ridden by none other than Richard Hughes who once again finds himself on a favourite who looks seemingly invincible.
Pesi Shroff who has won maximum of Indian Derbys as a jockey says that if he were to make a choice among his five horses that are running in the Derby, he would have preferred to ride Jacqueline. And this is only to be expected because Jacqueline has shown precocious speed, maintained her form during the Bangalore Summer Season and then expanded on her performance capabilities at her home centre.
Bruckner may have won the Calcutta Derby in record time but then he beat horses which didn’t trouble any of the horses which finished among the first six in the Golconda Derby last week.
Onassis is a fast improving horse who has won thrice during the season in impressive fashion but in everyone’s reckoning the race may have come too soon for him. He has a lot of catching up and he can only be classified as a horse which can upset if the fancied runners fail for one reason or the other. Astral Flash has very few career wins to her credit and interestingly, jockey Chris Hayes has chosen to ride Star Alliance who was a well beaten horse in the Bangalore Derby at the expense of Astral Flash. Does he have a poor opinion of Astral Flash? If the jockey is blessed with good judgment, his choice of Star Alliance itself may somewhat dampen one’s enthusiasm about Jacqueline. But then Chris Hayes may not be the best of judges at this point of time though he is a star in the making as far as jockeyship is concerned.
Among the other Mumbai horses, Native Knight who is still to win a race is being touted as an exciting prospect. Trainer Narendra Lagad believes that Native Knight is a late maturing horse and he is peaking at the right time and the Derby could be the place where he would showcase his undoubted talent. Native Knight’s chances of win in the Derby could be put in the category of day dream coming true!
This brings us to a truly exceptional horse which is Becket. The son of Hawk Wing out of Boiling River has won all his four races in impressive fashion. He has the attitude of a champion and he is not always content with just beating the opposition. He simply wants to demolish the opposition. Despite the many niggles, he has bounced back each time with a stunning performance. He has proved his versatility by winning on three different surfaces. He graduated from a seven furlong trip to a mile and half race in the manner of a true champion.
Trainer Padmanabhan always said from the day Becket set foot on the track, that he had a champion in his yard. Last year, he came for the Mumbai season but suffered a setback which kept him out of action for the entire winter season. Becket is a big made horse who has an amazing turn of foot. This will be for the first time that Jacqueline will be meeting a horse of the caliber of Becket. Padmanabhan says that Becket has traveled well and taken his hard race at Bangalore well though he is quick to emphasize that one cannot underestimate Classerville who has improved by leaps and bounds after his Golconda Derby second behind Arabian Prince in record timing.
Since Becket has the hall mark of a true champion, he is the one horse that Jacqueline will not be able to pass easily. Jockey Richard Hughes remarked that Becket was easily the best looking horse that he has seen in India. Becket has in him to convert the looks into performance. Owner Haresh Mehta was candid enough to say that the only threat for Becket is the horse himself. Becket always tends to outperform his physical maturity but now that he has furnished into a handsome colt, this should not bother him.
For those looking for a match for the pretty filly Jacqueline, there is no better one than the handsome Becket!
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