January 02, 2008	Wednesday	Zilhaj 22, 1428

LAHORE, Jan 1: Four-year-old bay colt Scooby Do looks all set to bag the main event when the midweek Lahore Gymkhana races get underway at the Racecourse on Wednesday.

The Kotli Plate, a class V division II handicap race featuring a card of six-events, will go over the sprinting distance of 1,000 metres. There are 15 runners in the field, barring last-minute withdrawals.

Owned by Mian Maahir Ahmad, Scooby Do has caught everyone’s attention by gaining the reputation of a strikingly good sprinter. He won an over 1,000 metres race but was beaten twice because of some abdominal trouble, which had then hampered his performance on the field. But now with the trouble detected and the colt cured thanks to his trainer A.B. Malik, Scooby Do is showing good track work. Still the race on Wednesday will be his real test.

Mirana Choice, Shah Pari and Home Star are also good sprinters who will form a vanguard of challengers for Scooby Do in the fourth race of the day.

The supporting and fifth race, the Landhi Plate class VI division 1, has nine runners. The filly Well Done among them looks like a fast pacer while the others can all be described as modest ones.

The chestnut filly from Bedauine Invader out-of Anokhi, Well Done has already won two consecutive races and will be on the trot to complete a hat-trick of wins. She has shown impressive action in her two previous outings, while proving that being efficient is far more important than possessing power. The apprentice Munir Ahmad, her rider in the last run, settled in front from the very start and finished the race in the same position as no one could challenge the filly. This will be the sixth and last race in the racing order.

The card looks competitive and to the delight of equine sport lovers there may be some close finishes too. The six races would be competed by some 75 runners. The first two will go over 900 metres while the remaining four will be 1,000-metre events.

Following are the fields and our selections:

Sahiwal Plate Class VII

Div 1-A 900M:

Non Stop 9-4, Golden Pari 9-0, Wonder Smile 9-0, Desert Eagle 9-0, Cash Deposite 9-0, Miss Mano 9-0, Sana 9-0, Mahima 8-10, Kipshah Gulshan 8-10, Burrat 8-10, Accurate 8-10, Sohna Murad 8-10, Sohni Bulbul 8-10, Rakhsh-i-Raqeeban 8-6, Noor-un-Nisa 8-6, Geo Bhakkar 8-6, Sohna Noor 8-6 and Dharkan 8-2.

Win: Non Stop. Place: Raksh-i-Raqeeban and Sohna Murad.

Sahiwal Plate Class VII

Div 1-B 900M:

Mere Lal 9-0, Nargis 9-0, Leader’s Wing 9-0, Lal Pari 9-0, Mere Bhakkar 9-0, Billoo Love Dilbahar 8-10, Sohna Bhakkar 8-7, Shehbaz Love 8-6, Mosaic 8-6, La Rosa Negre 8-4, Gold Venture 8-0, and Kashif Da Gulshan 8-0.

Win: Leader’s Wing. Place: Mosaic and Kashif Da Gulshan.

Landhi Plate Class VI

Div III 1,000M:

Happy Bear 9-0, Victory King 8-10, Aajzi 8-6, Dimple 8-4, Magic Dream 8-0, Company 7-12, Have No Fear 7-10, Great Rhythm 7-10, Gold Dust 7-10, and Waqas Prince 7-10.

Win: Great Rhythm. Place: Magic Dream and Company.

Kotli Plate Class V

Div II 1,000M:

Home Star 9-0, Mirana Choice 9-0, Tuba

First 9-0, Mikado 9-0, Hitler 9-0, Scooby Do 8-12, Cheeta Aya 8-10, Sohna Shehbaz 8-10, Diamond Sky 8-10, Lubna 8-6, Jomteen 8-6, Look My Luck 8-6, Zohra Jabeen (II) 8-2 and Shah Pari 8-0.

Win: Scooby Do. Place: Mirana Choice and Home Star.

Landhi Plate Class VI

Div II 1,000M:

Armida 9-0, Sabbet Qadam 8-12, Regulation 8-12, Umarr Prince 8-12, Weldon Shogun 8-8, Arsome prince 8-8, Sun Shine 8-6, So Romantic 8-4, High Quality 8-4 and Bird Fly 8-0.

Win: Armida. Place: Regulation and high Quality.

Landhi Plate Class VI

Div I 1,000M:

Desert Glow 9-0, Pick Of The Day 8-10, Faryal 8-10, Little Smile 8-5, Arzoo 8-2, Babbu The Great 8-2, Well Done 8-2, First dream 7-10 and Nut Cracker 8-2.

Win: Well Done. Place: Little Smile and Babbu The Great.