Trainer Pesi Shroff dominated Sunday`s race card at Mahalaxmi racecourse in Mumbai, showcasing his exceptional training prowess across multiple graded events.
In the feature race, the CN Wadia Gold Cup (Gr 2), powered by Zavaray S Poonawalla, Shroff`s horses swept the top three positions. Kings Gambit, ridden by A Prakash, registered an easy victory, pulling clear to win convincingly. Stable companion King Ke (Vivek G up) finished second, while Red Bishop (P Trevor up) secured third place. Both the winner and runner-up carried the colours of owner Vijay Shirke.
Mile record rewritten
Earlier Shroff had won the supporting graded event, the Maharaja Sir Harisinghji Trophy (Gr 3), also powered by Zavaray S Poonawalla. Zuccaro (Yash Narredu up), returning after more than a year off the track, stunned the field by setting a new track record for the mile in 1:33.96 seconds. The six-year-old, carrying the silks of KN Dhunjibhoy, produced a remarkable late surge. He raced last early on, then exploded on the outside in the final furlong with gigantic strides to nose ahead at the wire. Shroff`s other entrant, Psychic Star (Vivek G up), the pre-race favourite, accelerated brilliantly in the homestretch, and looked like running away with the race, only to be overhauled by Zuccaro in the final stride.
Shroff also bagged another grade 3 race with D`Artgnan (Vivek G up) who posted a stylish victory in the Shapoorji Pallonji Breeders` Juvenile Colts` Championship; however, his Angelisa failed to collar trainer Shazaan Shah`s Vortex (P Trevor up) in the Forbes Breeders` Juvenile Fillies` Championship.
In the Zavaray S Poonawalla Sprinters` Challenge over six furlongs, Dream Seller (trained by PS Chouhan, ridden by P Trevor) produced a strong performance. He moved up menacingly to overtake Social Butterfly (A Sandesh up) and drew away for an authoritative victory.
Trainer Sait honoured
In a special ceremony veteran trainer Imtiaz Sait was felicitated by the race club for completing 50 years in the profession. A specially created short film about Sait`s successes was screened on giant screens in front of a huge crowd, as Sait, with wife and daughter by his side, was offered pagdi and shawl as a mark of respect by the RWITC chairman Surendra Sanas.
