Warren Singh’s trainee, Shubankar, made the most of the favourite Champions Way’s fashionably late arrival to grab the 2000-metre Governor’s Cup, a terms race for four-year-olds and over, at Friday’s Mysore races. Shubankar, clearly in a hurry, shot off like a rocket, leaving the rest of the field—including Champions Way, who seems to have misplaced his GPS after winning the Golconda Derby in January—wondering what just happened. By the time Suraj Narredu finally decided to wake up the favourite and attempt a serious race, Shubankar had already sprinted off into the sunset, winning by a comfortable two-length plus margin. The remaining runners trudged home in a rather predictable procession.

Long-distance races in India are like tricky puzzles—if you let the pace-setter run free, you might as well hand them the trophy early. Shubankar, a known front-runner, was gifted a 10-length head start, as the others apparently thought a slow and steady approach was the winning strategy. The six-year-old son of Pinson gleefully accepted this generosity, conserving enough energy to stay ahead in the homestretch. Champions Way, who was loitering somewhere in fourth, eventually decided to sprint, but by then, the race was Champions Way tried, but physics said otherwise. As for Kalamisti, let’s just say the view from third place is lovely this time of year.

Rakesh-trained Brave Trooper was once the toast of the track, but over the past year, he’s had only hiccups. However, it seems the Trooper has finally shaken off his nagging issues—judging by the avalanche of support he got to win the 1200-metre A R Subramanya Raj Urs Memorial Trophy, a race for horses rated 60 and above. With jockey Anthony Raj steering the ship, Brave Trooper surged ahead and, quite frankly, was never really troubled by the competition as he strolled home with a widening five-length victory. Absolutechallenger gamely trotted in for second, while Court Jester—true to his name—played the supporting role. As for Mystic Bond, who clearly mistook this sprint for a casual Sunday jog, he lounged at the back of the field, only to make a half-hearted attempt in the straight, finishing a forgettable fourth.

Meanwhile, the encouraging second-place finish for Irish Rockstar last time out inspired a bold attempt in the 1600-metre Alekona Trophy for horses rated 40 to 65. D Fronx set a respectable pace, leading the charge as the field embarked on the eight-furlong journey, with Armory and the favourite, Irish Rockstar, following in hot pursuit. For a while, D Fronx clung on, but Armory turned up the heat midway, making D Fronx work harder than a jockey on a treadmill. However, the race’s mood shifted dramatically when Anthony Raj finally gave Irish Rockstar the go-ahead. The favourite soared past the front-runners clinching a comfortable three-length victory. Armory settled for second, while D Fronx, perhaps regretting all that early enthusiasm, limped in for third. The rest of the runners decided to keep things simple by staying out of the spotlight.

Anthony Raj wasn’t done yet; he then piloted O Manchali to an easy victory in the 1400-metre Hasthinapura Plate, a race for horses rated 40 to 65, marking his third success of the day. O Manchali, coming off an impressive win and second only in demand, bided her time behind Weronika, who led the charge before abruptly realizing that leading races is hard work and fading out in the straight. O Manchali seized the opportunity, breezing past to win without breaking a sweat. The Flying Feet, ironically, seemed to have left his wings at home, struggling to gather any pace and eventually fading out. Contributor, with a late sprint, grabbed second place ahead of another tardy arrival, D Roman Reigns, who appeared to have just remembered he was in a race.

With no recent form to brag about and a winless streak stretching nearly 500 days, Tejasvi-trained Glided Butterfly somehow attracted one-sided support to win the 1200-metre Sunderbans Plate (Div I), a race for horses rated 20 to 45. Whether the punters had a crystal ball or just a lot of hope, they were spared the heartbreak when the filly decided to take the day off—getting withdrawn at the gates. That left Perfect Justice as the default favourite, but justice wasn’t served this time. Enter Magic Circle, who swooped down the final furlong like a sorcerer with a point to prove, winning by a commanding margin of over four lengths. Perfect Justice could only muster up a well-beaten second, while Eiffel Tower stood tall—well, not really—settling for third.

Over in the lower division of the Sunderbans Plate, it was a similar story with all the hype surrounding Ramesh-trained Shadow’saim, despite her modest resume. This time, the favourite actually lived up to the billing, proving too good for the competition and winning comfortably by three lengths. Angad kept Shadow’saim in the lead from start to finish, with not a soul daring to test his authority. Aaradhana and Dalhousie followed like polite spectators, taking their places behind the winner without much fuss. As for the rest of the field, well, they seemed busy running a race of their own—perhaps on another track entirely.

Girinath-trained Inexhaustible hadn’t exactly been living up to his name lately, especially after finishing a good 20 lengths behind the winner last time out (blame it on a saddle shift, they say). Yet, there he was, quietly fancied to win the 1400-metre Yadavagiri Plate, a race for horses in the lowest category. It seemed the smart money was on Natural Fly and Game Boy, but the “quietly fancied” option decided to make some noise instead.

Jockey Kiran Rai took no chances, bolting off with Inexhaustible and establishing a big break over the rest. The way he tore down the track, it was clear he wasn’t going to run out of steam this time. The result? An easy victory for the aptly named Inexhaustible, while the others appeared to run out of gas somewhere along the way. Break Away finally remembered he was in a race and snuck into second, ahead of Natural Fly, in what ended up being a one-sided affair. As for the rest, let’s just say they looked like they needed a recharge.