In an astonishingly accurate case of name-what-you-want-most, a horse called Divine Intuition won on Friday at the Pune races — and at juicy odds of 20 to 1, no less. One would say divine intuition is exactly what punters need in Pune, where formbooks are often as useful as horoscopes and stables seem to conspire only to confuse.



Trained by Aman Altaf Hussain, Divine Intuition hadn`t won in over 200 days and didn`t send out so much as a nudge in morning workouts. But punters, who were busy chasing fancied runners,, watched in quiet horror as this forgotten steed sauntered to victory. The hot favourite Liam, from Nazak Chenoy`s yard, realised the race was on only after Divine Intuition had already collected the trophy.. Treasure Gold ended third, while Believe — once a sparkling juvenile — now looks like he`s in desperate need of Google Maps to find his way to the winning post.



The Beyond Expectation Plate, for the lowest-rated inmates of the racing world, was as chaotic as its name promised. Narendra Lagad sent out a cavalry of four, only to scratch the most plausible runner, Fidato, right before the start — a move that left punters scrambling for aspirin. Northern Singer was backed as if defeat was out of the question, but it was another Lagad horse, Mirae, who nearly stole the show at cricket-score odds. Just when Mirae was starting to dream of glory, the nine-year-old warhorse Between Friends emerged from the fog and pinched the race on the post for veteran trainer M K Jadhav. As for the rest of the field? They belonged to stables where not even divine intuition — or a tarot reader — could guide you right.



In the Ismail Khan Plate, race for horses rated 1 to 26, where trust is scarce and surprises are plentiful, punters thought they had the answer in Bohemian Rhapsody, the last-start winner who looked primed for an encore. The odds backed this theory. But then again, when Lagad has horses in the mix, expect the unexpected. Yuletide, who hadn`t won in 17 previous starts, bolted to the front with A Prakash up and kept galloping. Bohemian Rhapsody made a late move but by then, Yuletide was halfway to the celebration tent. Red Dust picked up the bronze medal for turning up.



Thankfully, some semblance of sanity returned in the higher class races. Divine Star, already boasting back-to-back wins at Bangalore, made short work of the 1200 metres J E Hughes Trophy. Trevor Patel barely had to steer — the horse did everything as he cruised to victory. Fighton came in second, while Alpine Star edged out Azrinaz to grab third. A straightforward race, which in Pune, is considered a miracle.



In the S K Sunderji Salver, Ultimo proved why he was sent off at cramped odds. The Pradeep Chouhan-trained runner, who had narrowly lost to Thundering Phoenix (now a Bangalore winner), decided to skip the drama this time. Jockey Ajinkya went start-to-finish — and likely wondered if the others had missed the break entirely, since Ultimo was operating in a different timezone. Golden Glow claimed second by default, and Caliph decided racing was not really his thing today and stayed loyally in last.
The JSK1 Gaming Trophy was a race for maiden three-year-olds and an absolute jackpot — but for the bookmakers. The heavily backed Among The Stars, with a résumé full of seconds, stuck to his comfort zone by finishing second again. Azure, from Imtiaz Sait`s yard, led all the way and didn`t give Among The Stars a sniff. As for Mulan, she started in third, finished in third, and probably dreams in third.



The Orange Flame Plate gave punters a proper finish — a rare occurrence — as Nostalgia and Doctor Dolly locked horns down the straight. Nostalgia hugged the rails like his life depended on it and edged out the favourite by just under a length in Trevor Patel`s capable hands. Vincero ran in for third.