The Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) will conduct a nine-race programme at Pune Racecourse on Sunday, with the action beginning at 1:00 PM and continuing until 5:00 PM. The meeting will feature races ranging from 1000m to 2800m, bringing together horses across different age groups and racing classes.
The principal attraction is the 4:00 PM Indian St. Leger, which carries a substantial total prize of Rs.75,00,000. Restricted to Indian horses aged four years, the 2800m feature has seven runners, including Andre’, Arrived, Matisse, Red Bishop, Caccini, Fynbos and Kings Gambit.
The day’s opening contest is the 1:00 PM Janardhan Salver, a Class V race over 1000m for Indian horses aged five years and over rated 1 to 26. The race carries Rs.5,00,000 in total prize money. Howlin Wolf, owned by Mr Prashant Nagar representing SKJ Thoroughbreds Pvt Ltd, will be ridden by N. S. Parmar and trained by M. K. Jadhav. Etoile, owned by Mr K. H. Vachha and Mrs Bakhtawar B. Chenoy, has A. Omkar in the saddle and Bezan Chenoy as trainer.
House of Lords, representing the ownership of Mr Dharrit Shah, Mr Henit Y. Shah, Mr Hreeday Henit Shah and Ms Heeyaah Henit Shah through Zwenzi Traders & Advisors Pvt. Ltd., will be ridden by Ramswarup and trained by Narendra Lagad. Between Friends, owned by the Estate of late S. S. Shah, has Prashant P. Dhebe as jockey and M. K. Jadhav as trainer. Ma Cherie will be ridden by Dashrath Singh for trainer Sangramsinh N. Joshi, while We Still Believe has K. Nazil in the saddle for S. Waheed.
The remaining runners are Moment of Madness, owned by Ms Rehanullah Khan and Mirza Ahmed Busheri, with S. Siddharth riding and Rehanullah Khan training, and Lightning Blaze, owned by Mr Dharrit Shah, Mr Henit Y. Shah, Mr Hreeday Henit Shah and Ms Heeyaah Henit Shah, representing Zwenzi Traders & Advisors Pvt. Ltd., with Avinash Paswan riding for Narendra Lagad.
At 1:30 PM, the S. S. Shah Salver will be contested over 1600m. The Class II race is for horses rated 60 to 86 and carries Rs.9,00,000. Break Point, owned by Mr Jatin L. Trivedi and Mr Nitin H. Jain representing J. N. Racing & Breeders LLP, will be partnered by Antony Raj S. for trainer P. S. Chouhan. Opus Dei, owned by Mr C. Aryama Sundaram, has P. Trevor riding for Imtiaz A. Sait.
Dreamer, owned by Mr Prashant Nagar representing SKJ Thoroughbreds Pvt Ltd, will have N. S. Parmar aboard for M. K. Jadhav. Rosario, owned by Mr & Mrs Vijay B. Shirke and Mr Jay V. Shirke, will be ridden by S. Siddharth and trained by P. Shroff. Seneca, with ownership involving Mr Haider Soomar, Mrs Rashmee A. Amersey representing So Blest Trading Co. Pvt Ltd and other partners, has Ramswarup riding for Adhirajsingh Jodha.
The 2:00 PM B. K. Lagad Salver Division II covers 1200m and is a Class IV race for Indian horses rated 20 to 46, with Rs.5,50,000 on offer. Gold Bar will be ridden by Ramswarup and trained by Adhirajsingh Jodha, while Aeon Flux has C. Umesh riding for trainer Faisal A. Abbas. Zephyr will be partnered by Shrikant Kamble for P. S. Chouhan.
Queen Caroline, owned by a group including Mr Kishore P. Rungta and Mrs Ayesha A. Hussain, has S. G. Prasad riding for Aman Altaf Hussain. Arbitrage will be ridden by Haridas Gore for Rehanullah Khan, while Commanchero has K. Nazil riding for Dallas Todywalla. Neutron will be partnered by N. S. Parmar for M. K. Jadhav, with Adonis, Hiranyamayee and Sky Bound completing the field under S. J. Sunil, Bhawani Singh and Vishal respectively.
At 2:30 PM, the Shamu Chavan Salver brings a Class III contest over 1400m for horses rated 40 to 66, carrying Rs.6,50,000. Bishop, owned by Mrs Liane Luthria, has Vivek G. riding for P. Shroff. Spanish Eyes will be ridden by P. Trevor and trained by Dallas Todywalla.
Don Julio, representing a large ownership group including Mr & Mrs I. Nathani and Alpha Stud and Farms Pvt Ltd, has A. Sandesh aboard for Rehanullah Khan. Storm Cloud will be ridden by A. Prakash and trained by Narendra Lagad. Dedication has Neeraj Rawal riding for Shazaan Shah, while Esteban will be partnered by Avinash Paswan for Narendra Lagad. Rambler completes the field with H. Zeeshan riding for Shazaan Shah.
The 3:00 PM Uttam Singh Trophy is another Class IV contest, this time over 1800m for Indian horses rated 20 to 46. Looking Like A Wow will be ridden by Ramswarup and trained by Subhag Singh, while Land of Plenty has Bhawani Singh riding for the same trainer.
Merchant of Venice will be partnered by R. Ajinkya for Adhirajsingh Jodha. Tajiri has C. Umesh riding for Faisal A. Abbas, while Exotic Star will be ridden by S. Mosin and trained by S. Waheed. Funny Bunny has Antony Raj S. riding for P. S. Chouhan, Daredevil has Yash Narredu aboard for M. Narredu, and Acropolis will be partnered by A. Prakash for P. Shroff. Absolute Serenity completes the nine-runner field with Prashant P. Dhebe riding for P. S. Chouhan.
The 3:30 PM S. K. Sunderji Salver is reserved for three-year-old Indian horses and covers 1400m, with total prize money of Rs.12,00,000. Money Spinner, owned by an extensive partnership including Horse Haven Breeding and Racing Private Limited and other racing interests, will be ridden by R. Ajinkya and trained by P. Shroff.
New Star has Yash Narredu riding for M. Narredu, while Zuniga will be partnered by Kirtish Bhagat for P. Shroff. Acrobatic has Neeraj Rawal riding for Imtiaz A. Sait. Baillee will be ridden by Antony Raj S. and trained by Sanjay Kolse, while Britannia has Vivek G. aboard for P. Shroff.
Deavline will be partnered by N. Bhosale for Dallas Todywalla, with Frenzy carrying P. S. Kaviraj for P. S. Chouhan. Powerofattitude has Ramswarup riding for Adhirajsingh Jodha, Pure Soul will be partnered by P. Trevor for Prasanna Kumar P., and Rogue has H. Zeeshan riding for Shazaan Shah. Shimmer completes the 12-runner field with A. Sandesh riding for Adhirajsingh Jodha.
The Indian St. Leger takes centre stage at 4:00 PM, with the 2800m event carrying the meeting’s highest total prize of Rs.75,00,000. Andre’ will be ridden by Antony Raj S. for trainer Bharath Singh, while Arrived has P. Trevor riding for Adhirajsingh Jodha.
Matisse and Red Bishop are both trained by P. Shroff, with A. Prakash and Neeraj Rawal respectively taking the rides. Caccini, owned by Poonawalla Racing & Brdg Pvt Ltd, has A. Sandesh riding for Karthik Ganapathy. Fynbos will be partnered by Vivek G. for P. Shroff, while Kings Gambit has Yash Narredu aboard for the same trainer.
The 4:30 PM B. K. Lagad Salver Division I covers 1200m and is another Class IV contest for horses rated 20 to 46. Rizz will be ridden by A. Sandesh for Adhirajsingh Jodha, while Floyd has S. J. Sunil riding for Vijay Kasbekar. Red Lightning will be partnered by Neeraj Rawal for Narendra Lagad.
Believe has R. Ajinkya riding for S. Waheed, Alexandria has Bhawani Singh aboard for Altamaash A. Ahmed, and Rafael will be ridden by Vishal for Nirad Karanjawala. Ministry of Time has D. R. Shubham riding for Aman Altaf Hussain, while Baklava has S. Siddharth for Sangramsinh N. Joshi. Maratha Admiral will be partnered by N. S. Parmar for M. K. Jadhav, with Horizon carrying A. S. Peter for M. Narredu and Tranquila having Prashant P. Dhebe riding for P. S. Chouhan.
The nine-race programme concludes at 5:00 PM with the Nana Raghunath Salver, a 1400m Class V race for Indian horses aged four years and over rated 1 to 26. The race carries Rs.5,00,000.
Golden Heart, owned by Mrs B. E. Saldanha, Mr Aftab Singh and Mr Mehtab Singh representing Sohna Stud Farm Pvt. Ltd., among other partners, will be ridden by Saurav Rawat and trained by M. Narredu. Beyond Stars has S. Zervan riding for S. Waheed, while Fay will be partnered by T. S. Jodha for Behram Cama.
Ashwa Ankara has S. Siddharth riding for Sangramsinh N. Joshi. Red Merlot will be ridden by Avinash Paswan for Narendra Lagad, while Flashman has A. Omkar riding for Bezan Chenoy. Gibson Knott will be partnered by K. Nazil for Sangramsinh N. Joshi, with South Beach completing the card under N. S. Parmar for M. K. Jadhav.
The Pune meeting therefore brings together nine races featuring a broad range of sprinting and staying tests, with the Indian St. Leger providing the day’s longest race and highest prize allocation. The combination of established performers, younger horses and experienced trainers and jockeys gives the Sunday programme a varied racing profile from the opening 1000m contest through to the concluding 1400m event.
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