Sharavanan trained Galaxy Queen produced a powerful burst of speed in the final furlong to edge out favourite Storm Ahead in the shadow of the post to win the 1600 metres Victory Zone Trophy, a race for horses rated 40 to 65, the only cup event of Wednesday`s Mysore races. Storm Ahead shook off front-running Sardinia in the final furlong but was floored by the finishing speed of Galaxy Queen.

Storm Ahead had run a noteworthy second in his last outing and thus had the credentials to be the favourite. Excelonce and Sardinia were the others to get some notice in the ring. Galaxy Queen was quietly fancied which was the reason why the progeny of Mull of Kintyre went to the post at nourishing odds. Sardinia went on a start to finish mission and put up a dogged resistance in front before yielding her place to Storm Ahead. In the end, even Storm Ahead had to surrender to Galaxy Queen who proved superior. Sardinia battled on to take the third spot. Excelonce was in touch with the front-runners but when the race came on the boil, he did not find an extra gear to stir things up.

Girinath trained Kazuri recorded an encore with an aggressive display in front in the 1400 metres Halebeedu Plate, a race for horses rated 60 and above. Kazuri led from the start and was strongly challenged by favourite Gelignite in the final furlong. However, the lesser fancied runner produced that bit extra to slip away from the challenger who was shy by a length at the finish. King Julien was third.

Irvan Singh who rode Kazuri was also successful on the well backed Savannah Sound in the 1200 metres Kutta Plate (Div I), a race for horses rated 40 to 65. Savannah Sound stole a march at the top of the straight and established what turned to be a winning lead. Bandito came up with a late bid only to find the front-runner slip away. Azure Fire returned rich dividend on place investment. The lower division of the race was won by fancied Just By Chance. Majestic Queen led from the start with Just By Chance in a handy second position. Just By Chance got the needed momentum in the final furlong and managed to overhaul the front-runner with a measure of comfort to record an easy win. Majestic Queen just about held on to the second position in a cluster finish with Kentucky Rose finishing third ahead of Umarkot. Favourite Dhanyavaad put up a poor show.

Irvan Singh who was in the limelight with a bagful of wins, was also successful astride Diamond Attraction in the 1200 metres Splash Plate (Div I), a race for horses rated 20 to 45. From a forward position at the final bend, Diamond Attraction broke clear in the straight to establish a winning lead by the final furlong and held on to it with a measure of comfort. Heavily backed Platinum Pearl did not get a brisk start and though the six-year-old gelding finished powerfully, the leeway was too much to cover and he had to settle for the second place ahead of Starstruck and late-rallying Tobin. Santosh Rao trained Anonymous overwhelmed the opposition to win the lower division of the race. Anonymous was full of running at the finish and he easily sailed past the front-running Jamais Vu. The latter just about managed to save the runner-up berth from fast finishing Ice Brown.

Srinath`s strong driving finish enabled Esoterical get the better of Golden Steps in the 1400 metres Kovalam Plate (Div I), a race for horses in the lowest class. Golden Steps held the initiative for a long time in the final furlong before Srinath`s perseverance saw Esoterical clinch the issue in the closing moments of the race. Coffee Time who was sluggish at the beginning recovered lost ground and saved place money, finishing ahead of favourite Precious Script. Favourite Blackwind had to be goaded strongly to produce a strong run in the final furlong to clinch the lower division of the race. Neron threatened to cause an upset but closer home was beaten by Blackwind and the late-finishing Infinithoughts.