All roads will lead to the Mahalakshmi Racecourse this afternoon to view four five-year-olds taking on seven of the Classic generation in the Omkar Indian Turf Invitation Cup (Gr. I; 2,400m).
With about three-quarters of the race's winners having come into the event off a run in the McDowell-sponsored Indian Derby, one looks to that race for the identity of the likely winner.
This year, the Indian Derby winner is an exceptional horse. Be Safe, trained by Mallesh Narredu, has won all but one of his ten starts, has set multiple track records and simply towers over his contemporaries.
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Had this race been run under the old conditions, prior to its being opened up to older horses, Be Safe would have been at “money back” and the race would have been devoid of anything more than academic interest. Perhaps the only talking point would have been the booking of Richard Hughes for the improving Aquamarine.
However, with the highest rated horse in India — Amazing Grace — in opposition, not to mention last year's Invitation winner (Alaindair) and runner-up (Agostini), along with the Calcutta champion Snowdrift, Be Safe will have something to think about.
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Amazing Grace, a home-bred for Vijay Mallya's United Racing and Bloodstock Breeders, has won her last eight races and made Alaindair look almost pedestrian in the Indian St. Leger back in September.
Meanwhile, the last-named has returned to his best, so clearly there are challenges for Be Safe and his rider, Suraj Narredu, will have to perform at his peak to bring home the glittering prize in the M.A.M. Ramaswamy silks. That said, Be Safe looks to be amongst the very best ever seen on an Indian racetrack and should triumph.
To be run at 3-40 p.m, the Maj. P.K. Mehra Memorial Super Mile (Gr. I; 1,600m) is the principal supporting event of the afternoon.
The race bears an open look and a case can be made for each of the dozen runners. Zachary, Godspeed and Shivalik Storm from the 2011 crop and Field Marshal and Machiavellianism from outside the classic generation are talented performers which are likely to figure in the shake-up.