A record number of contenders in the last 67 years, 20 in all, has exposed the Kingfisher Ultra Indian Derby to traffic woes. With D-Day just a day away, the trainers of participating horses who fancy their chances are getting sleepless nights over the possibility of their 4-legged pupil getting caught in a traffic jam when the most prestigious event in Indian racing comes to a boil in the last 400 metres of its gruelling 2400 metres journey .
With jockeys trying to run their mounts close to the rails to get the advantage of the shortest route to the finish, the inside of the track will be a crowded affair as 20 horses try to hug the rails. The trouble starts when the contend ers start to turn for the home stretch. With not many hav ing the stamina to stay the distance, they start falling back and disturb the progress of the others running behind them.
"Many of the horses run ning in the Indian Derby don't deserve to be there They simply don't have the class to compete and win a race over 2400 metres, which tests the true ability of a champion. Such horses are there because their owners wish to see their colours (the jersey that a jockey wears) be seen by a large gathering Such horses start running out of steam and start falling back blocking the path of oth ers," said one jockey on con dition of anonymity .
"You need the luck of the race to get a good position," said former jockey Aslam Kader who had won the most sought after crown in Indian racing through Astonish (1992), Astronomic (1993) and Elusive Pimpernel (1995)."The traffic can get very tricky and even the best of horses can get stuck and by the time it gets a clear run, the race is already out of their hands," says the legendary rider.
Former ace jockey Pesi Shroff, who has won this blue riband of Indian turf a record eight times, says apart from luck of the race, it really helps if you know the capacity of all the contenders and ability of their riders."You will be surrounded by many horses from all sides.If you know the ability of the horses running in front and sideways, you can anticipate when they might start running out of gas and begin dropping back. This helps in planning your move to avoid getting stuck," says the ace trainer who has two frontline contenders in Costa Del Sol and Myrtlewood in the big race.
