Karam Pe Karam may excel at LRC

LAHORE, Jan 26: A strong turn out of in-form horses likely for the Lahore Race Club (LRC) Cup, to be run over 1,600 metres, during the 22nd Winter Meeting here on Sunday.

The provincial metropolis city of Lahore is at present in the grip of a severe cold wave with temperatures dropping below minus two degrees Fahrenheit which have affected the sporting scene. However, the races are being held on schedule with a fantastic response from the owners including some from Karachi.

In all, seven acceptors have been left in after the scratching, barring last-minute withdrawals. But they all are running horses, having won one or more races each and that makes it an interesting clash among class five horses.

Since no one has ever gone over the race distance of 1,600 metres, it more or less looks an open affair. Four runners appear to be in with a better chance. They are Lucky Cat, Karam Pe Karam, Janu and Born To Win. On bloodline, the bay colt Karam Pe Karam seems genuinely a stayer over the 1,600 metres and well-placed in handicap to win top honours.

The rest of them should fight for the remaining places.

The supporting event, the Lahore Plate, class four division I, II and III combined handicap race, has a big field of 10 runners, if there are no last-minute withdrawals.

Of them, two colts, Desert Prince and Lucifer and a filly Diamond In The Dust attract by their recent performances with the first named a better proposition.

Desert Prince had been enthralling the public with his three wins in a row but had put up a dismal show in the fourth race, finishing third behind Manu Janu and Lovely Gate in the Wazirabad Cup run over 1,400 metres.

That still remains a mystery though. Although chances of involvement of a hidden enemy in the sudden defeat of Desert Prince has now been ruled out after the colt’s joint owners — Mirza Khurshid Baig and Zaheer Aslam — failed to find any clue. Subsequently, they tightened security around their “racing jewel” which paid dividends when the colt registered a smashing victory on Jan 13. The owners, while talking to Dawn, did not reveal what exactly happened to the colt but expressed hope of winning more laurels through the majestic colt.

Zaheer also said he was facing great difficulty in arranging the rider for the colt when there is no calibre jockey in Lahore. He has been strongly advocating for inviting jockeys from India.

Many years ago, Zaheer had invited a jockey from Hong Kong called Dennis Michael to ride his hores on the Derby Day races. Michael’s arrival was a roaring success as Zaheer’s horse won the Pakistan Derby. He is hoping for the return of a similar day.

Desert Prince’s close rivals could be disgraced colt, Lucifer, who reportedly developed indeterminable defect which resulted in his recent poor run. Lucifer won a grand race on Nov 4 last year but has since put up an ordinary show in the subsequent three races. Perhaps he had not been accustomed to urges of the jockeys or the joining the training camp of Khadim Hussain as the new trainer after the demise of Haji Mohammad Sarwar.

Four-year-old filly, Deja Vu, whose performance in her last outing three weeks ago left everyone puzzled, will be going all out to salvage her lost pride in the third race. Her owner, Syed Pervez Hussain Shah had failed in finding out the reason of her failure. He along with the trainer, Sohail Aziz had worked hard to put the filly on the rail. It is a forgone conclusion that some thing was wrong somewhere, either with the stable or the jockey, otherwise the daughter of Baker’s Gate would have not belied her bloodline this way. Sunday’s race will be a pointer.

Manan Prince, Zohra Jabeen and Emperor may fight for the places.

A card of six events, looking competitive will be down for the decision, one event will be gone over 1,000 metres, one 1,100 metres and four over 1,600 metres. The first race will start at 12.00 noon.

Following is the field and our selections:

MINCHANABAD PLATE CLASS VI DIV I 1,100M:

Mid Night Fury 9-2, Victory Gallop 8-10, Desert Glow 8-10, Darnaz 8-10, Batista 8-6, Dram Act 8-6, Sohna Billoo 8-6, White Oaks 8-4, Lubna 8-4, Red Fairy 8-4, Babbu The Great 8-4, Honest Minister 8-4, Billoo The Great 8-2, Look My Luck 8-0, Star Dust 7-10.

Win: Mid Night Fury.

Place: Darnaz and Sohna Billoo.

LRC PLATE CLASS V DIV II-B 1,600M:

Empire Maker 9-0, Sabbaet Qadam

8-12, Sun Dancer 8-10, Super Sonic 8-6, Munsaf 8-6, High Jet 8-6, Magic Queen 8-2, Redouble 7-11.

Win: Redouble.

Place: Empire Maker and Munsaf.

LRC PLATE CLASS V DIV I-B 1,600M:

Emperor 9-0, Deja Vau 8-12, Gold Medalist 8-11, Mannan Prince 8-10, Run And Win 8-8, Shah Pari 8-6, Zohra Jabeen 8-6, Authorised 8-5, Dream Memories 8-5, Dillagi 8-4.

Win: Deja Vau.

Place: Mannan Prince and Zohra Jabeen.

LAHORE PLATE CLASS IV

DIV I, II & III 1,600M:

Tuman Khan 9-2, Desert Prince 9-0, Lucifer 8-8, Noor 8-8, Diamond In Dust 8-6, Discovery 8-2, Herry Can View 8-2, Royal Fish 8-2, Bold Act 8-2, Valenday 7-8.

Win: Desert Prince.

Place: Diamond In Dust and Lucifer.

LRC CUP CLASS V DIV I-A 1,600M:

Lucky Cat 9-4, Apex 9-0, Karam Pe Karam 8-13, Janu 8-10, Born To Win 8-10, Spiritual Song 8-10, Scooby Do 8-6.

Win: Karam Pe Karam.

Place: Born To Win and Lucky Cat.

MINCHANABAD PLATE CLASS VI

DIV II & III 1,000M:

Love Minister 9-0, Pick Of The Day 9-0, Big Choice 8-12, Sher Khan 8-10, So Romantic 8-8, Al Ain 8-0, Victory King 7-8, Mah-e-Noor 7-8, God Gift 7-8.

Win: Sher Khan.

Place: Victory King and Love Minister.