Duke Of Tuscany shocks Fynbos to win Idar Gold Trophy in Pune
Duke Of Tuscany, ridden by R. Ajinkya, upset favourite Fynbos to win the Idar Gold Trophy at Pune on August 29. The 15-to-1 shot prevailed in the 2,400m feature, finishing ahead of Fynbos and Kings Gambit.
The winner, owned by M/s. K.N. Dhunjibhoy, Z.K. Dhunjibhoy & Ms. Anosha Meyers rep. Five Stars Shipping Co. Pvt. Ltd., Mr. Rama Seshu Eyunni & Ms. Anita J. Captain, is trained by P. Shroff. Duke Of Tuscany recorded a time of 2m 29.34s, beat Fynbos by 3/4 of a length, and returned ₹107 (w), 27 and 10 (p). Fynbos had started as the race favourite.
Trainer Adhirajsingh Jodha dominated the card by saddling four winners on the day. His successful runners included Challenge Accepted (Azzurro Plate), Sovereign King (J.E. Hughes Trophy), Seneca (Evaldo Plate) and Encino (Noshir & Dolly Dhunjibhoy Sprint Million, Gr. 3).
In the Azzurro Plate (1,200m) Challenge Accepted (Ramswarup) won from Manor House (Prasad) and Son Of A Gun (A. Prakash), with Liban (Aditya) fourth; margins were 5-1/2, 1 and 1-3/4 and the time 1m 9.20s. The race returned ₹16 (w), 10 and 19 (p); Challenge Accepted was the favourite. Owner: Mr. Rajendran rep. Rapar’s Galloping Stars LLP; Trainer: Adhirajsingh Jodha.
The J.E. Hughes Trophy (1,600m) went to SOVEREIGN KING (Antony Raj S) from Chagall (Vivek G) and Fighton (Neeraj), with Regina Memorabilis (Neeraj) fourth; margins 1/2, 1-3/4 and 9 in 1m 38.25s and a winner’s return of ₹13 (w). Owners: Mr. Sudendu Shah, Mrs. Preeti C. Shah, Mrs. Vanita K. Shah, Mr. Rahul Shah, Mrs. Pooja S. Shah, Mrs. Hiral Shah, M/s. Chaitanya Shah, Vinod M. Mathurawala & Tanmay Mathurawala rep. Shah Equines LLP; Trainer: Adhirajsingh Jodha.
In the Evaldo Plate (1,600m) SENECA (Ramswarup) beat Don Julio (Neeraj) and Spanish Eyes (Trevor), Ashwa Gypsy (Gore) finishing fourth; margins were 1-1/4, 1-1/4 and 1 in 1m 39.20s, paying ₹35 (w). Favourite: Don Julio. Owners: Mr. Haider Soomar, Mrs. Rashmee A. Amersey rep. So Blest Trading Co. Pvt. Ltd., Mr. Kishore P. Rungta, Mr. Vivek S. Jain, Mr. Saleem Fazelbhoy & Mr. Gautam Lala rep. Gainsville Stud & Agl. Farm Pvt. Ltd.; Trainer: Adhirajsingh Jodha. Note: In this race Mansa Musa (Aditya up) fell down near 400m dislodging his rider. Jockey Aditya escaped unhurt.
The Star Trainer Plate (1,000m) was taken by DARCY (C. Umesh) from Admirable (Neeraj) and Storm Cloud (Avinash), with Gunfire (Yash) fourth; margins 2, 1/2 and 1-1/4 in 57.65s returned ₹38 (w). Favourite: Gunfire. Owners: M/s. Chanakya Sanjeevkumar Gaur, Cowas D. Bajan & Faisal A. Abbas; Trainer: Faisal A. Abbas. The NOSHIR & DOLLY DHUNJIBHOY SPRINT MILLION (Gr. 3) (1,200m) saw ENCINO (P. Trevor) win in 1m 8.21s from Shambala (Antony Raj) and Market King (Vivek G); margins 2-1/2, 2-1/4 and 1-1/4 and a ₹15 (w) return. Favourite: Encino. Owners: Mr. Gautam Lala rep. Gainsville Stud & Agl. Farm Pvt. Ltd., M/s. Kishore P. Rungta, S.R. Sanas & Ajay K. Arora; Trainer: Adhirajsingh Jodha.
The Fourth Estate Trophy (1,400m) was won by ESTEBAN (Avinash Paswan) from Funny Bunny (Vivek G) and Believe (Ajinkya), Appalachian (T.S. Jodha) fourth; Go Tonto was a non-runner. Margins were 2-3/4, Long neck and Short Neck in 1m 25.97s and the winner returned ₹86 (w). Favourite: Funny Bunny. Owners: M/s. Balam Mohla, Jehangir Mehta, Anil Saraf, Kishore M. Dingra & Rajiv Tinaikar. The CAPITULATE PLATE (2,000m) went to EXOTIC STAR (S. Mosin) ahead of Whisper (Vishal) and Ma Cherie (Gore) in 2m 10.61s; margins 2-1/4, 2-1/2 and 2-1/4, paying ₹56 (w). Note: In this race first favourite Mai Tai (Bhawani astride) planted into the stalls and did not participate.
Jackpot and treble pools were declared for the meeting: Jackpot 70%: ₹1,90,043 (3 tkts.), 30%: ₹6,787 (36 tkts.); Treble: (i) 407 (45 tkts.), (ii) 3,072 (12 tkts.). The Super Jackpot stands at 100%: 48,137 (c/f).