Dallas Todywalla`s It`s My Time could not have asked for a more gracious gift than the 1400 metres King`s Ransom Trophy—a race where the competition was as threatening as a light breeze on a lazy afternoon. With opponents straight out of the "run-of-the-mill" collection, the five-year-old gelding, fresh off a leisurely break, graciously accepted the feature event of Sunday`s Pune races on a silver platter. It`s My Time, under jockey A Prakash, must`ve been thinking, "Well, if no one else wants to win, I guess it`s my turn."

From the start, It`s My Time took the lead as if told by the others and never looked back. Unchallenged, he continued to widen the gap, eventually strolling past the post with a comfortable three-length cushion. Baby Bazooka, attempted a chase, might as well have been giving It`s My Time a friendly wave from the distance as she took second.

And then there was Taimur. The third contestant in this little drama, last seen covering a gruelling two miles in March, appeared to be here more out of obligation than ambition. He ran his race with the enthusiasm of someone checking off a to-do list, managing to finish a respectful distance behind Baby Bazooka. But he did earn enough to keep himself fed for another day. It`s My Time, indeed—though one could argue the title should be amended to "It`s My Cakewalk."

For trainer Dallas Todywalla, who had been stuck in a winless rut for a good month and a half, the aptly named It`s My Time must`ve felt like a well-timed personal victory lap. After enduring countless frustrating afternoons watching his horses politely decline the winner`s circle, Todywalla could finally breathe easy. The weight advantage his charge enjoyed was practically a gift-wrapped ticket back to the top, and one could imagine him muttering under his breath, “Well, finally!”

Pradeep Chouhan-trained Fontana might have hoped for a smoother transition to new surroundings when lining up for the 1400 metres Moosa M Hoosein Trophy, but reality had other plans. After migrating from Pesi Shroff`s stable, Fontana looked comfortable in third as Winter Agenda and Lord And Master led the charge. But when the moment came to hit the gas, Fontana discovered he was out of gears, swiftly overtaken by a stampede of late challengers.

Faisal Abbas trained Singer Sergent, sluggish out of the gates, was a different story. By the final turn, he had built up steam on the outside and surged forward, overtaking My Princess in the last 100 metres in the hands of jockey Vivek G. Meanwhile, Opus Dei, who had been lingering in the rear, found a divine burst of speed down the final furlong, weaving through traffic on the inside to finish nearly in line with Singer Sergent. But it was Attained who stole the drama. After losing ground at the start, he went from dead last to an aggressive late charge, only to find the winning post sneak past him by the smallest of margins—just a short head and neck separating the top three.

The blistering pace seemed to play a cruel trick on those leading early, as all the finishers stormed from positions that usually spell doom on Pune`s short, sharp stretch.

After the head-scratching performance of the heavily fancied Fontana, Pradeep Chouhan had every reason to flash a grin as Dream Seller turned the tide in the 1200 metres Dakshin Maharashtra & Goa Sub-Area Trophy. Despite his flirtation with old habits—namely veering off course, jockey Ajinkya managed to rein him in, keeping Dream Seller on the straight and narrow for most of the race.

Last year, Dream Seller had dramatically veered out toward the outer rail, but today, it seemed like he was at least willing to cooperate. At the start, Ajinkya had to wrestle with him a bit as he tried to take a detour, but once Dream Seller found his groove, he dominated the field, making it clear that when he ran straight, he was a force to be reckoned with.

Chasing him down were Portofino Bay and the crowd favourite Dexa, but the battle for the runner-up spot turned out to be the real nail-biter, with Portofino Bay narrowly edging out Dexa at the wire. In the end, it was a triumphant encore for Dream Seller, giving Chouhan his second win since recently receiving his training license.

Hormuz Antia, a trainer with a reputation for loving a well-timed gamble, was back in his element with Expedite in the 1400 metres Panchshil Million, a race for maiden three-year-olds. Known for pulling off king-sized upsets, Antia has historically danced on the edge with the racing authorities, but with age comes wisdom—or at least the appearance of it. These days, he`s fine-tuned his strategies to pass muster, and Expedite was the latest horse in his playbook.

Having run a solid forward race last time out, finishing just under four lengths behind the winner, Expedite was quietly backed despite not being the obvious favourite. The withdrawal of Substantial should have put the spotlight on him, but instead, the betting market rallied around Divine Star and La Dolce Vita, the latter buoyed by flashy performances in mock races. Meanwhile, Nostalgia also drew considerable attention, leaving Expedite at nourishing odds.

When the gates flew open, Afreen set a brisk pace, clearly on a mission to lead from start to finish, with La Dolce Vita in hot pursuit. Behind them, the field stretched out, and Expedite, a bit hesitant at the start, found himself towards the rear. As La Dolce Vita faltered and Divine Star made a brief, uneventful appearance, Afreen looked like she might pull off the upset. But just as she was getting comfortable in the lead, danger loomed large on the outside.

Jockey Prasad, riding as if he had a winning lotto ticket in hand, urged Expedite to charge. The progeny of Phoenix Tower responded with purpose, sweeping past the long-time leader Afreen with a fair bit of ease to claim victory. Afreen, to her credit, fought gamely to hold off Nostalgia and secured second, while La Dolce Vita limped home to complete the frame, far behind the battling trio up front.

In a race where horses seemed to have made a pact to avoid the winner`s circle at all costs, someone had to stumble across the finish line first, and this time it was the Shazaan Shah-trained Spirit Bay, a six-year-old mare who finally decided that the 23rd time`s the charm. Clearly inspired by the weight of everyone`s betting slip, she coasted to a comfortable victory in the 1000 metres Alameda Plate, a race that boasted more "almost" and "not quite there" kind of horses.

With apprentice jockey N Bhosale in the saddle, Spirit Bay seized the lead early from a field that practically waved her by with a “you go, girl” attitude. Facing little to no opposition, she sailed to an easy win by over four lengths, leaving the rest of the field to marvel at her sudden ambition.

Reciprocity, a seven-year-old gelding who apparently enjoys finishing somewhere behind but is still a consistent fan favourite for reasons only known to his loyal backers, did his best to chase her down. His effort? Admirable, though as fruitless as ever. Still, he nabbed second place, securing enough to cover his daily oats. Fantastic Flare, another horse that`s spent more time running races than winning them (23 outings and counting), picked up third—though one might argue he`s just getting started on his long quest for mediocrity.

Hoshidar Daji-trained Wanderlust, after dashing punters` hopes with a narrow loss in his previous outing, finally made amends in style in the 1200 metres Amjad Khan Trophy, a race for horses rated 20 to 46. With jockey Saqlain determined to make it right, Wanderlust delivered the win his backers had been anxiously awaiting.

Moonlight Kiss led the field deep into the straight, setting the pace as if she had grand plans of gate-to-wire glory. But in the final 100 metres, Saqlain had other ideas. Aggressively driving Wanderlust forward, he managed to overhaul the leader, pushing his mount ahead with authority.

Meanwhile, second-favourite Eloquent had her own set of problems. Hampered by Maysara early on, she couldn`t get into the forward bunch but was cleverly guided by Trevor Patel along the shortest path by her jockey. Despite a late surge, it wasn`t enough to trouble Wanderlust, who crossed the line with a comfortable lead. Moonlight Kiss hung on for third, while Eloquent`s late efforts were only enough to secure second place.

Aman Altaf Hussain-trained Malakhi seemed destined for success in the 1600 metres Richelieu Plate, a race for horses rated 0 to 25, if the odds in the betting ring were anything to go by. With Malakhi sitting comfortably at short odds, it felt like the rest of the field had accepted their fate, as the long-shot prices on offer suggested they were more there for the scenery than to challenge the favourite.

Jockey Sandesh played it cool, keeping Malakhi relaxed in fourth as Yuletide set the early pace. But as the field approached the final bend, the favourite was just getting started. With minimal effort, Malakhi breezed past the front-runners and stormed ahead once they hit the straight. The result was a five-length victory that was as easy as it was inevitable.

Neilina followed in for second, while Marlboro Man claimed third in what can only be described as a leisurely procession behind the winner. For Malakhi, it was as smooth as they come—a dominant win that left the rest in the dust.