Spark of Life shows the spark again

MYSORE

SPARK OF Life has acquired this strange habit of striking rich every alternate run. Accident or design? It is a baffling question. But somehow the four year old gelding has been sticking to this pattern for quite some time. On Friday, the Mohan Valavi trainee chose the big stage of the Maharaja's Gold Cup to conform to that sequence.

This year's lot for this prestigious event was decidedly one of the poorest line-ups in recent memory. This was clearly for want of performance-oriented quality. Consider the top four market preferences. At seven Imperial Scholar has to be taken as long in the tooth. Aerobee has at best been steady without being spectacular. Mr. Belvedere has ostensibly reached a saturation point. Earl Grey is on the up but a relative fresher among the seasoned ones.

This being the set up, pull in scale was a marked advantage for Spark of Life whose last run behind Hope and Faith had been a modest one to say the least. There was a certain amount of hush hush about Spark of Life, the kind which creates a``talked''about horse in a race. One who in general racing parlance is a quiet fancy.

At a handicap that is as light as the one Spark of Life was assigned, Imran Chisty, standing in for Krishnan, chose predictably familiar tactics of setting his own terms. In this case it worked to a jaw-dropping precision. At the busy end, Spark of Life was defiantly holding on to that cushion he had established while turning in. Aerobee is no doubt a late rusher but quite often the Pillay trainee has only been known to have a short burst within which either the colt makes it or falls short. In this case S. R. Bhagwat fell tantalisingly half a length short. Earl Grey had to spend some time in sizing up the challenge and also the choice of ground both of which in the end added to Appu's discomfort in not finding suitable galloping room. As to why Mr. Belvedere has reached that optimum beyond which a horse normally struggles to go lies in the fact that the five year old came with purpose to engage Spark of Life in a duel and then saw the spirit flag. There is this inescapable feeling that the day Sterling Fantasy is stretched to its fullest capabilities, the five year old should be raising a winning gallop.

The win should be heartening for Mohan Valavi who has done remarkably well for someone who has a small string going.

It is sad that this time-honoured event held in such high esteem has lost that olden days``aura''and the day itself passed off as if nothing special. The Mysore Race Club is duty bound to restore to this race the old glory it deserves and make the day a special one as it had always been.

The passing week was dominated by the Robert Foley-B. Prakash combination which struck a treble on both days. The progression for the biggest stable on show now looks far healthier after several setbacks in the last few meetings.

You never quite know when your winning turn comes. That must have been M. Dasrath's refrain. After months, if not years, of fruitless wait, the jockey was aboard a winner and he ended up dictating the course of events on Sirajuddin-trained Dictate who successfully thwarted a twin challenge from Daiimio and Power Extreme, the two most sought after in the betting. To Power Extreme's defence it must be said that Daiimio was the cause of that heavy lean which forced A. Imran Khan's mount out.

Whether odds-on favouritism represented value for money in the case of Diamond Rock is a moot point. But the three year old could not quite handle another of his age Rasna, who took over the running at the top of the straight and comfortably held on.

On either halves of Ancheta bloodline there is evidence of speed. The filly was at her sprinting best as Aslam Kader took the Vijay Singh trainee to the front and if he had wanted to could have added a few more lengths to the verdict. Given the nature of Ancheta's win, a fine on the rider for looking back seems over- reaction on the part of the stipes. Annodomini probably appreciates a little more ground. Keep an eye on Three Coins if the gelding chooses to go down to a lower category.

When Future Fame missed the jump, there was understandable anguish in the stands. But B. Prakash quickly brushed the three year old up to be well in sight of early leader Almond who led as long as he could before being collared. Ambermatic drifted away to the fringes of the track while Native Red who was Future Fame's closest rival in the market clearly needed this run.

For sheer last furlong frenzy nothing could beat the five-horse mad rush that saw Soviet Park snatch an exciting victory from Machrie Bay. Quite a few were prone to shift lanes bringing to the finish a scary dimension. Jai Bharath was an unfortunate victim of this jostling and to an extent Golden Collection also suffered. To a lesser degree even Screen Play's path was not all that smooth. Thus it came as no surprise when Shakti Singh raised a successful objection on Machrie Bay for obvious bumping.

Atalantis took his own time to deal with Imperial Force but towards the end the Serious Spender colt was motoring along quite well to indicate his readiness to pick up another race.

Compliance was by far the most impressive winner on Thursday. The Placerville-Caherduff four year old at last got the trip of her relish. Augill Castle blew up after bringing the field into the straight. Compliance, always handy had something in store. Acceptor rallied late to deprive Augill Castle the runner-up spot which looked his until the last stride. Trivia's forward run is best noted not the gelding's eventual nowhere.

Scenic Bay pulled clear of the field over a sprint. Evidently her heart is more for longer trips. Of the beaten lot, Stormsky's drool into second was construed by the officials as a lax effort on the part of Imran Chisty. There is no doubt that the winner was far too good. Yet the impression was that the rider on Stormsky had that casual air about him.

Akasaka's win over fancied Spectacular Style was accompanied by offical lament that Krishnan on Three To Count was outrageously still. While Akasaka had the form pointing to a long overdue win, it was evident that Three to Count was more in the nature of a stranger. On top of this, trainer Inayathullah also ended up on the wrong side of the ledger for not fulfilling certain duties a licensed professional ought to complete after a race.

Two of the runners in the thick of betting were embarrassing sights in Thursday's nightcap. While Chippo was gracing the wrong end, Medwin was caught midpack and never quite showed promise of getting into that fighting equation. In the hands of Surjeet Singh whose riding is showing marked improvement, Gracious Rohit, despite shifting out in the final stages, lasted out to beat Scandal Sheet. Special Crown's determined effort saw him get upto Pharoah for minor honours.

H. S. MANJUNATH

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