Malesh Narredu trained Be Safe looks invincible in the Gr 1 Kingfisher Derby, the most prestigious race of the Bangalore Summer Season, to be run in front of what will be a capacity crowd on Sunday. Even given the uncertainties associated with the sport, Be Safe looks so far ahead of his rivals that only a conspiracy of circumstances can deny him glory. There is not a single horse in the fray which could be considered at this point of time to be capable of posing a threat to his supremacy of Be Safe who already has a bagful of wins.

This particular Derby has the nasty habit of springing surprises with amazing regularity. The last firm favourite to win was Set Alight several years ago which incidentally was ridden by Malesh Narredu who now trains Be Safe. The Hazara Stud Farm produce has not put a foot wrong since suffering a rare defeat in the Poonawalla Multi-Million due to the vagaries of the sport. As such, it is futile to look beyond Be Safe. His presence has not have scared away good opponents. It is just that we have to make to do with only hopefuls in the fray. The absence of Maisha from the lineup has robbed whatever competitive interest that the race may have generated as the two had run together within close proximity of each other at Mumbai. The first run of Maisha at Bangalore has to be ignored because of the fact that the filly didn`t travel well and raced totally underdone which was proved by the emphatic win in her subsequent outing. Since she is not in the fray, it is only of academic interest how these two horses would have fared over the extended trip of mile and quarter.

There should be no doubt about the staying abilities of Be Safe because his dam is by Kings Best. So there is plenty of stamina influence on the dam side. Be Safe has settled down well though he races keen. On the last occasion, Be Safe was not happy with the slow pace and Suraj Narredu had to keep him off the trouble, travelling wide all the time. The pace of the race is not going to be hot and as such, it is critical for Suraj to have the horse happy during the course of the journey and keep him ready for the final surge. Suraj is yet to win this race thus far in his career. Surely he has to cope with pressure.

Ganapathy trained Bold Majesty, also sporting the same colours as Be Safe, has won twice in impressive fashion and is graduating into this exalted company. Bold Majesty is by the hugely successful stallion of last year Multidimensional out of classic winning mare Fond Fantasy. He is well bred and should relish the distance as well as the soft underfoot conditions. If Be Safe is off colour for any reason, the horse that could profit would be Bold Majesty.

Shezad Abbas trained Silver Phantom ran a mighty race in the Colts Championship with a front running effort and finished third to Be Safe. On the basis of that run, it is hard to visualize him causing an upset though the son of Verglas should run a better race than last time because he ran without the benefit of a race run. Silver Phantom could be the horse one could hear positively during the monsoon season at Hyderabad.

Pesi Shroff trained Tiger Tops slipped from the exalted rating that she enjoyed at the end of the Mumbai racing season. It is hard to understand why she ran so poorly in the Fillies Championship. Her jockey appeared to have no control on the horse who ran all over the place and finished poorly. On the evidence of that run, if she finishes on frame, it should be considered good progress.

Darius Byramji`s Alexandra Mills has fared well thus far though she was beaten by a fair distance by Maisha in the Fillies Championship. She should be busy fighting for the minor places. Culebra is another horse who is an enthusiastic participant in the race.

Then there is Remembrance of You who got the better of Supreme Dominator in a tight finish to come out of the maidens` ranks. The reason why she finds a place in the lineup is because of the respect her breeding commands. She is by Dubawi who has fired good quality winners in Europe. Remembrance of You has been working well and has a chance of figuring on the board if she shows improvement over her previous effort.

Be Safe looks unbeatable unless of course the horse decides to beat himself. History has repeatedly shown that there is no such thing as invincible in life!