Things fall in place for Lagad at Pune - By S. Awasthi I TNN
Posted on - 28 Jul 2010
Things fall in place for Lagad at Pune
By Shailendra Awasthi
Even as the Pune season is warming up, veteran trainer Narendra Lagad has already stolen a march over the other professionals. After four days of racing, where a total of 31 races were run, six wins to his credit may not appear impressive, but he looks all set to sustain his great run on the monsoon track.
The 51 year old, however, denies working to a specific plan to dominate monsoon racing. “Actually I have been caught in a cycle at Pune and things fall into place for me,” says Lagad who has won four championships at Pune in the last decade.
“About 15 years ago I had a very bad Mumbai season. It was followed by some good results in the next Pune season. Since then I have been caught up in a cycle of having a good Pune season after a bad Mumbai season,” points Lagad, who is yet to win an Indian classic despite his horses having placed in classics.
According to Lagad, a not-so-good Mumbai season helps his contenders come down in handicaps. “There is nothing special about Pune. The horses are the same and the competitors and riders are also same. But what happens is that most of my horses, since they don’t do well in Mumbai, they come down in scale for the Pune and that helps them come out in flying colours,” explains Lagad.
He attributes his success at Pune to the subdued approach to the season by bigger trainers. “Most of the big and successful trainers wait for the plums of the Mumbai season and a lot is at stake in terms of big prestige and huge prize money,” says Lagad.
The veteran trainer says his good time in Pune also is due to the kind of horse owners who take his services, “My owners are interested in winning whatever comes their way. They want to win irrespective of weather, or big or small stakes,” informs Lagad.
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