LAHORE: Rank outsider bay filly Fox Trot caused a major upset on Sunday evening when she edged out on the line another outsider filly Wild Coast to win the Islamabad Cup, a Class VI Division III and IV handicap race, in the Lahore races here at the floodlit Racecourse.

Bay filly Electra finished a close third while favourite filly Hash Tag succumbed to a heavy impost of weight in handicap to complete the frame in a well-contested event in which the first four runners finished within one and a half lengths to make it an all-fillies race.

A race later, yet another dark filly Al Bahar managed to win the Khair-ud-Din Barbarosa Cup in a pulsating finish defeating chestnut horse Barbarians Charge. Filly Naseeb Wali finished third, three-fourth of a length back with filly Squid Game fourth. Public fancied Sand Storm proved worth her name to finish among also-rans.

Jockey Tahir Abbas utilised his skills to steer Al Bahar to victory while Barbarians Charge lost by the rider Javed Iqbal’s being a lesser fry in the saddle craft in spite of his courageous ride pitched against one of the top riders.

Definitely Iqbal has managed to be a good fighter handicapped even by the age. The defeat deprived Iqbal of a good double, who had earlier steered Chota Pathan to win over Mera Darwaiash in the second race.

Favourite bay gelding broke his duck on the victory table to score his maiden success in the opener to give punters a good start. Punters were lucky to get another winner in Meri Malangni in the third race but in the subsequent events they faced disappointments one after the other when well-backed horses failed to oblige them.

Riding boy Safdar Hussain continued to impress when he brought in a brace of winners through Fox Trot and Codes Of Cracker in the feature event and the last race of the card, respectively. Both his winners were sent out by rider-turned-trainer Qadeer Ahmad.

Published in Dawn, May 31st, 2022