Hall of Famer ready for fame - By Shailendra Awasthi | TOI
Posted on - 04 Feb 2017
Hall of Famer ready for fame
By Shailendra Awasthi
TOI
Bengaluru Filly Has Emerged As A Worthy Challenger
Hall Of Famer, the challenger from Bengaluru, has emerged as a serious contender for the Indian Derby after her brilliant performance in the previous two races. She is likely to give Serjeant At Arms and Temerity a run for their money on Sunday.
The manner in which she lost to Mrs Patmore by the slimmest of margins in the Indian 1000 Guineas and later thrashed her rivals in the Kolkata Derby by a huge margin (8 lengths) have made Hall of Famer the one to beat in the most prestigious race of the Indian calendar.
Though she won the last three of her five career starts on the trot before coming to Mumbai for the Indian 1000 Guineas, Hall of Famer wasn't considered a serious Classic contender because of her wayward effort during her previous wins, where she had drifted badly towards the finish.
But her performance in the Indian 1000 Guineas, where she showed remarkable discipline, before finishing with a flourish, has brought her into the picture ahead of the Derby.
So, what did Hall of Famer do to change her style of running that's brought positive results? “It was her right side milk tooth which was troubling her and forcing her to drift out side to avoid pain,“ her trainer S Padmanabhan told TOI.
“We knew she had this problem, but, we couldn't take it out as unlike in humans where milk teeth come out on their own, in horses milk teeth are embedded in the gums and until the permanent teeth grow and pushes them out, you cannot remove them,“ explained Padmanabhan, one of India's leading trainers, who won the Indian Derby twice before with In The Spotlight and Desert God.
“So once we managed to remove the tooth before the Indian 1000 Guineas, she became comfortable and it showed in her performance in the Guineas where she lost to Mrs Patmore in the last few strides,“ said the 61-year-old professional from Bengaluru.
According to Padmanabhan, despite the fact that there are 14 runners, the final battle in the Indian Derby will be restricted to Serjeant At Arms, Temerity and Hall Of Famer.“The fourth serious contender, I feel, should be Germanicus as he has the right mixture of speed and stamina that matters in such big races.“
