The 74th running of India’s richest horse race — The Kingfisher Ultra Indian Derby — was staged here on Sunday. People from all walks of life gathered on the sprawling lawns of the Mahalaxmi Race Course, with many at their fashionable best.
Desert God, bred by Burden of Proof out of Running Flame at the Kunigal Stud Farm owned by Vijay Mallya, set several new records by winning the prestigious race.
The son of Running Flame, perhaps, is the first horse in the history of this race to have been bred, trained and owned by one man — S Padmanabhan.
Seventeen years ago, Desert God’s mother, Running Flame, who was also owned and trained by S Padmanabhan and his wife Sharmila Padmanabhan, had failed to win this coveted race after winning the Indian Oaks.
Desert God has done her proud by achieving this feat of winning the iconic race in addition to the Deccan Derby and Kolkata Derby.
Jockey David Allan, who won the Indian Derby astride Moonlight Romance in 2011, dazzled in the saddle by keeping his mount close to the fence and manoeuvred his way through the narrowest of gaps to get a clear run in the last two furlongs to stave off the challenge of Pesi Shroff-trained Myrtlewood (PS Chouhan astride), and was successful in keeping her at bay by half a length.
Allan said, “It was a tough race, but I was confident throughout. Desert God is a tough boy and he was up for the challenge. Even when Myrtlewood came alongside, I was never bothered about her as I was confident Desert God would prevail.”
Padmanabhan had this to say, “I seriously thought he had it in him to win such a tough race as the Indian Derby when he won the Deccan Derby at Hyderabad in October last year. His progress has been steady, if you discount the narrow miss in the Mysore Derby. We didn’t press him too hard in his Kolkata Derby win, and he was fresh for the Indian Derby. I honestly believed he would win the Indian Derby.”
Royal Western India Turf Club chairman Zavaray Poonawalla was no less thrilled. “It was tough work, but we managed to pull it off magnificently. I hadn’t seen such a mammoth crowd since 1968,” he said.
Mallya was all smiles, too. “I was particularly overjoyed to see the number of youngsters in the crowd, and this will augur well for the future of horse racing,” he said.
