LAHORE, Jan 23: The long-shot chestnut gelding, Aao Payar Se, sprang a big surprise by winning feature event of the mid-week Lahore Gymkhana races at the Racecourse Wednesday.

Aao Payar Se, who was almost trailing the field at the start of the race, which was run over five furlongs, came rushing with fast strides to pip the front-running roan colt, Puma Star at the finishing post. The gelding won by a head in the photo-finish. The bay gelding Star Gate, who earlier in the race fought with Puma Star for supremacy, finished third, also beaten by a head’s margin.

The much talked about and fancied bay filly Shinning Princess ran disappointingly and only completed the frame. In all, ten runners were left in the field after the last-minute withdrawal of Four Aces from the contest.

A race earlier, the bay mare Mohni Road lived up to her reputation of being a reliable animal and ran spiritedly to claim the fifth event run over the identical distance of five furlongs.

Mohni Road outpaced the bay filly Lucky Credit Queen, projecting her head ahead at the finishing line. Thus Mohni Road won by the shortest of margins. During this race, the bay mare Rehmat Ka Phool flashed past the tiring gelding Fiftysix Fiftysix, beating him by a neck and getting third spot. In all, 15 ran in this closely-contested event.

After the race, the riding boy Qamar Zaman, who rode Fiftysix Fiftysix, lodged an objection against the jockey Shehzad Iqbal, who partnered Lucky Credit Queen, for boaring and bumping in the last furlong of the race. The Lahore Race Club (LRC) stewards, after a long deliberation and watching the video-film of the race, over-ruled the objection. However, they fined Shehzad Iqbal Rupees 2000 (two thousand rupees) for dangerous riding. The stewards’ decision was “not liked” by the race-fans. They said that if at all they (stewards) were to over-rule the objection, then why did they take so long to arrive at the decision? They added that if the race was run “fairly” and the jockey Shehzad Iqbal was not at fault then why he was fined.

The riding boy Qamar Zaman excelled in the saddle by bringing home a brace of winners. He first rode Rim Jim in the third race and then followed it up with a fine display of horsemanship by riding Mary Star to a stunning victory in the following event. He received a spontaneous applause on both occasions. Only two favourites obliged in a card of six events. All races were contested over the sprinting distance of five furlongs.

Following are the results:

SUKKUR PLATE CLASS VII DIVISION IV & V 5 FURS: