Mumbai Season Saddles Up; Lean, Late, and Loaded
By Sharan Kumar
While most racing centres
across the country are busy wrestling with one crisis or another, some
predictable, some invented for sport, the long, winding Mumbai racing season is
finally ready to roll out the red carpet on Thursday. Yes, it’s been trimmed
from the grand 50-day marathons of yesteryear to a sleek 26-day sprint, but one
mustn’t complain: even the monsoon tried to sabotage the party with unseasonal
rains but it could only delay the season by a few days.
But Mumbai has its own aura, some
call it charm, others call it stubborn glamour but the racing remains fiercely
competitive, even if the winners’ enclosure often feels like Pesi Shroff’s
private office. Pesi, as ever, holds not just the whip but the entire
orchestra, baton included.
Veteran Imtiaz Sait continues
to age like the priciest single malt; steady, smooth, and still capable of
flooring you. His enthusiasm could put rookies to shame. And then there’s
Adhirajsingh Jodha, a man who returned from Chennai with so many winners you’d
think he’d brought them back in checked baggage. Since then, he’s been Mumbai’s
comeback kid, second only to Pesi in patronage, and armed with sprinter Time
And Time and many accomplished horses.
Pradeep Chouhan deserves a
chapter of his own. The man didn’t just switch from jockey to trainer; he
practically project-managed the career shift. Now he has a growing string, an
even faster-growing reputation, and that dangerous thing, hunger. If he keeps
striking winners, he may soon need a larger barn and a trophy cabinet.
Dallas Todywalla continues to
do what Dallas does, deliver early results with his two-year-olds. His tally
may not be what it once was, but don’t be shocked if he pockets juvenile races
before others even warm up.
Trainer M. K. Jadhav,
meanwhile, seems poised for a breakout, blessed with good horses and armed with
the services of the accomplished David Allan, the foreign jockey with the
highest tally of classic wins in India.
Then there is trainer Malesh Narredu, who
endured a Pune season so barren it could have doubled as a case study in
drought management. But class, as they say, is permanent and this is a man who
has pocketed the Indian Derby twice without breaking a sweat. Expect a
healthier Mumbai run from him, especially with Holy Smoke, the colt who
descended from the clouds in the Pune Derby and announced himself as a
long-distance threat.
The only dampener this season
is the absence of the late S. Padmanabhan, who made the Mumbai classics his
treasure chest. His long-time assistant James McKeown now holds the reins, with
Mysore Derby winner Miracle Star likely targeted at the Indian 1000 Guineas.
Pesi Shroff, of course, enters
with an arsenal: Bangalore Derby winner Fynbos, Pune Derby destroyer Zacharias,
and a parade of unexploited youngsters he refused to unleash on the Pune track.
Expect a flurry of debutants and a continuation of his championship
stranglehold.
Narendra Lagad will strike
when the money’s down because what else is tradition for? Young Aman Altaf
Hussain has shown he’s not here just to make up the numbers.
Off the track, the Mumbai
committee deserves applause for its yearly efficiency, an endangered quality
these days. The Poonawallas continue their philanthropic streak by turning the
classics into gold mines and the racecourse into a stage worthy of glamour,
attention, and the occasional jaw-drop.
The crown jewel, as always,
remains the Indian Derby on the first Sunday of February, where the crowds come
in droves and the horses come with dreams of immortality. With nearly 700
horses stabled and Oisin Murphy expected to appear for the major classics, the
season promises much.
So, buckle up. Twenty-six
action-packed days, four Indian Classics, millions in stakes, and enough drama
to power a small television channel. Mumbai racing back and fully intends to be
irresistible. Punters will, no doubt, give their enthusiastic thumbs-up. The
professionals, however, must try to match that energy.
The opening day is already a
dampener with just six races, hardly the grand opening one expects. Yes, horses
are shifting from Pune to Mumbai, but if this lukewarm enthusiasm continues,
the disappointment will spread faster than race-day rumours. Punters don’t just
crave racing; they crave well-filled, seven-or-eight-event cards as
standard fare.
The authorities have done
their bit, meticulous planning, tidy execution, and zero excuses. Now it’s the
professionals’ turn to show up with the same enthusiasm instead of the same old
tired refrain about “prospectus issues” while avoiding any real participation.
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