Sprinters Cup has an intriguing look
Traditionally the Gr 1 Oasis Star Sprinters Cup has been a graveyard of favourites. Interestingly the only two times that favourites looked invincible in the last decade was when Oasis Star after whose name the cup has been named was running. On both the occasions that Oasis Star ran in this race, she won in record timing. Other than Oasis Star, there has been an odd favourite who has won the Sprinters Cup but they have been exceptions to the rule. With the horses well matched, luck of the race and draw plays a vital role and as such upsets are par for this race.
Forest Flair picks himself as a probable winner in this race as the progeny of Placerville lost in last year’s edition to Palazzio’s Sun. Forest Flair has given weight and a beating to most of the contestants in fray. But his poor run last time out puts a question mark whether he is in the same condition that made him an invincible sprinter on the local circuit. Trainer Karthik Ganapathy attributed the below par performance last time out to the wide outside draw that he had in the Dr S C Jain Sprinters Cup. Once again he has got an outer draw. Surely he does not inspire confidence that he did during his prime. As such, he can only be termed as a frontline contender but not as s sure shot.
Faisal Abbas trained Weizhou produced a shocker of a result in the Dr S C Jain Sprinters Cup. He sported blinkers for the first time and this seemed to have worked wonders. But whether things will fall in place for him to strike yet again remains to be seen. When Weizhou ran last time, he was the least fancied runner but now he carries the tag being a fancied runner and hence the horse and jockey will not be as relaxed as the last race As such, how both deliver under pressure is what gives clue to his prospects. Y S Srinath who has won the Sprinters Cup four times knows a trick or two to manage tricky situations.
Pesi Shroff trained Eloise made an effective switch back in distance from the mile to sprint by finishing second to Weizhou. She needed the re-orientation run to sharpen her for the sprint and now that she has proved her worth; she is a force to reckon with. She has been drawn well and will be guided by Stephane Pasquier and as such, they are a formidable combination in this race which has a big field of 14 runners.
Then there are the pair of runners from Padmanabhan namely D’Artagnan and Celestial Way. D’Artagnan thrives on more racing though he has been founding wanting when it came to winning. He has been consistently figuring on board and was third to Palazzio’s Sun in last year’s addition. He has been dawn well, worked brilliantly and if he translates his workouts into race performance, he can beat them all. But then he has never lived up to expectations.
Celestial Way has been a gusty performer. The small made daughter of Orpen won a Graded race over sprint in Bangalore during the summer season and thereafter was campaigned over longer trips. She made a good switch back in distance while finishing full of running and occupying the third spot behind “Weizhou and Eloise. Now with Richard Hughes to guide her fortunes, her chances cannot be ignored though she has got an outer draw.
Bezan Chenoy trained Nefyn has been an unbeaten performer though he has been sparingly raced. Each of his appearance has been a winning one. He is being thrown at the deep end without the benefit of a race run as his first run is his best. He is a dark `un in the fray.
Shyam Habbu’s Ikaria performed well at Kolkata where he dominated the sprints with some amazing performances. Ikraia had her initiation to racing in Mumbai and as such he is no stranger to the race track here. Ikaria is a game performer who deserves healthy respect.
Then there are capable runners in Bhagirathi, Captivating and Attila who can make the race an intriguing one
Forest Flair picks himself as a probable winner in this race as the progeny of Placerville lost in last year’s edition to Palazzio’s Sun. Forest Flair has given weight and a beating to most of the contestants in fray. But his poor run last time out puts a question mark whether he is in the same condition that made him an invincible sprinter on the local circuit. Trainer Karthik Ganapathy attributed the below par performance last time out to the wide outside draw that he had in the Dr S C Jain Sprinters Cup. Once again he has got an outer draw. Surely he does not inspire confidence that he did during his prime. As such, he can only be termed as a frontline contender but not as s sure shot.
Faisal Abbas trained Weizhou produced a shocker of a result in the Dr S C Jain Sprinters Cup. He sported blinkers for the first time and this seemed to have worked wonders. But whether things will fall in place for him to strike yet again remains to be seen. When Weizhou ran last time, he was the least fancied runner but now he carries the tag being a fancied runner and hence the horse and jockey will not be as relaxed as the last race As such, how both deliver under pressure is what gives clue to his prospects. Y S Srinath who has won the Sprinters Cup four times knows a trick or two to manage tricky situations.
Pesi Shroff trained Eloise made an effective switch back in distance from the mile to sprint by finishing second to Weizhou. She needed the re-orientation run to sharpen her for the sprint and now that she has proved her worth; she is a force to reckon with. She has been drawn well and will be guided by Stephane Pasquier and as such, they are a formidable combination in this race which has a big field of 14 runners.
Then there are the pair of runners from Padmanabhan namely D’Artagnan and Celestial Way. D’Artagnan thrives on more racing though he has been founding wanting when it came to winning. He has been consistently figuring on board and was third to Palazzio’s Sun in last year’s addition. He has been dawn well, worked brilliantly and if he translates his workouts into race performance, he can beat them all. But then he has never lived up to expectations.
Celestial Way has been a gusty performer. The small made daughter of Orpen won a Graded race over sprint in Bangalore during the summer season and thereafter was campaigned over longer trips. She made a good switch back in distance while finishing full of running and occupying the third spot behind “Weizhou and Eloise. Now with Richard Hughes to guide her fortunes, her chances cannot be ignored though she has got an outer draw.
Bezan Chenoy trained Nefyn has been an unbeaten performer though he has been sparingly raced. Each of his appearance has been a winning one. He is being thrown at the deep end without the benefit of a race run as his first run is his best. He is a dark `un in the fray.
Shyam Habbu’s Ikaria performed well at Kolkata where he dominated the sprints with some amazing performances. Ikraia had her initiation to racing in Mumbai and as such he is no stranger to the race track here. Ikaria is a game performer who deserves healthy respect.
Then there are capable runners in Bhagirathi, Captivating and Attila who can make the race an intriguing one
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