"Antonios is a worthy champion": Srinath

On Wednesday (April 15), a friend called me to say, "Jockey Srinath is very upset about the way people are reacting after Set Alight's loss in the Derby. Would you lke to speak to him?" "Sure," said I, "give me his phone number." 

This article is based on the talk I had with the ace jockey--only, I have put it in the first-person version so that readers can have a feel of Srinath directly talking to them on one-on-one basis.

By Y S Srinath

When I was at the track yesterday morning, a senior racegoer who is pally with professionals asked me, "So tell me, by how many lengths would you have won if you were riding Set Alight?" "Are you out of your mind?," I shot back, "what makes you think she could have won?" 

A colleague then told me that a huge controversy had developed over the last 48 hours about Malesh Narredu's handling of Set Alight, in the press and on internet forums, and suggested I should read all about it. And now, after reading the stuff, all I can say is that I am absolutely disgusted! Every idiot who does not understand racing and riding has used and abused the freedom of expression, sadly, under the cover of anonymity that the internet offers, in vilifying the man (Narredu) who rode one of the best races under the circumstances. 

I should know, because I was in the race, riding Oaks winner Riyasat, and I have also watched the video a number of times. Here is my reading of the race. 

First, Set Alight was a bit too hyper in the paddock parade. Maybe the heat and the crowd, in a way, got to her. She jumped smartly, but was too keen, almost in a hurry! In the video you can see her mouth was open for the first couple of furlongs and she didn't want to be restrained. It was as if she wanted to get over and done with this race as soon as possible. I think Malesh did a splendid job in that he still managed to calm and settle her well, although I am sure no jockey would like to be so close to the pace in a mile-and-a-half race. But then, the last thing a jockey wants is to antagonize a strong-willed horse.

I had settled Riyasat way off the pace and I was having a good look at all the runners ahead of me, and especially Set Alight and Autonomy, who were perceived as the main two contenders. After the halfway mark, Autonomy hurriedly improved and got alongside Antonios who too had made steady progress from mid-bunch to be in striking position around the turn. 

At the final turn, I saw Abs Fabs and Go Guzzi Go, at the head of the pack, starting to fall back and a gap opened for Set Alight and Malesh. In retrospect, I think this was a crucial moment, and Malesh surely did the right thing by asking her to take that gap, and not stay with this duo who fell back so alarmingly, they finished in the last four. It is unfortunate that Set Alight, already very keen and impatient by this time, perhaps misinterpreted this signal (horses do it more often than you might think), and spurted ahead with such energy that I instantly had an inkling she could be collared near home if she spends all of it. And when I saw Antonios gaining momentum with every stride in the final furlong, I knew the result of the race. 

Later, when I watched the race on video, I realised what a worthy winner Antonios actually was. He had a rough passage, met with interference at an extremely crucial juncture before the turn, but still managed to unleash a terrific burst to win decisively by a length-and-a-half, and that too, in record time! I have no doubt if he had a clear passage, the margin would have been much bigger. 

The sorriest aspect of this whole, needless controversy is that in all the noise made by people who are clearly talking through their pockets, racing fraternity has missed a great opportunity to applaud a real hero, Antonios, and his connections--owners and especially the trainer, whose hard work, toil and training made it possible for a 50 to 1 shot to get into the Derby scroll of honour.