Countdown to Derby - I

The filly factor in Derby

Prakash Gosavi
gosavi@mid-day.com

A Derby is the most prestigious race of any country, just like the Indian Derby, scheduled to be run at the Mahalaxmi racetrack this Sunday (February 6), is India's greatest horse race.

Traditionally run on the first Sunday of every February, this will be the 69th edition of the race that was first run in 1943, and for liquor giant Vijay Mallya's McDowell, this will be a straight 27th sponsorship of the race.

Interestingly, on Thursday at the Mahalaxmi racecourse, the UB Group will ink another Derby sponsorship contract for a record sum of Rs 28 crores with the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC Ltd) to continue to sponsor the race for five more years between 2013-17.

All over the world there is a belief, of course backed by statistical evidence, that colts or geldings (male horses) are more favoured to win the Derby than fillies (female horses), and the Indian Derby is no exception. It is thought that the reason for this is that the Derby trip of mile-and-a-half (2.4 kilometers) is a grueling test of stamina as well as speed, and males being the physiologically stronger sex, end up winning more often.

However, fillies have had their share of Derby triumphs. In fact, the first ever Indian Derby, run in 1943, was won by a filly named Princess Beautiful, owned by the Maharaja of Baroda, trained by MC Patel and ridden by English jockey Edgar Britt, and just last year, Jaqueline, the Shirke, Dhunjibhoy & Desai-owned filly trained by Pesi Shroff and ridden by Richard Hughes, inscribed her name into the Derby scroll of honour as only the 16th filly in the 68-year old history of the Indian Derby.

This year, yet again, there is a fair chance that a filly might end up winning the McDowell Signature Indian Derby as the prospects of Moonlight Romance, trained by Cooji Katrak, are getting stronger by the day as extensive efforts are being made by owners RK Wadhawan and Prem Tharani to import a successful foreign jockey to ride her in the Indian Derby, against their own other colt, the Sunderji-trained Ocean And Beyond, who may be chosen for a ride by their retained first rider Richard Hughes.

There will also be another promising filly in the fray, Xisca, carrying the same colours as last year's winner Jacqueline and trained by the same Pesi Shroff, who has been well-rested after her Kolkata Derby victory, and will most likely be ridden by Pasquier.

‘Black’ magic

Vijay Mallya, the UB group boss, won his first Indian Derby with a filly named Cordon Bleu, but there is a little story about why he could not lead her in in his own silks of 'White, black V, red cap'.

In the 1988 Indian Derby, Mallya had six runners in the race, but only five sets of jockey shirts. So one of them had to go in the emergency colours—black shirt and cap. Since another filly owned by Mallya, Divine Light (Vasant Shinde up), was a piping hot favoruite for that Derby and widely expected to win, all the attention of the connections was centered around her. Ironically, Mick Kinane on Cordon Bleu, who was relatively unfancied, was asked to wear the emergency colours of 'all black', a practice that is followed when an owner's set of silks are short.

As luck would have it, Cordon Bleu, on whom Kinane, donning ‘all black’ silks, rode a magical race to upset all, including the stable’s hot favourite Divine Light.

(c) MiD DAY