JF Thunder gallops home with Brutus Cup at LRC.

Byline: Aftab Gilani

LAHORE -- Chestnut colt JF Thunder, ridden forcefully by jockey Tahir Abbas, won the Brutus Cup during the Lahore Winter Meeting at the Racecourse here on Sunday.

The feature event, which was contested over the sprinting distance of 1,200 metres, was contested intensely by four strong contenders - JF Thunder, Costa Rica, Me Raqsam and Bet Fair, who were all backed equally by their respective connections.

Dark-bay Bet Fair, bay fillies Costa Rica and Me Raqsam fought a grim battle in the early stages of the race while JF Thunder was in fourth position close on heels. The winner, however, accelerated his speed gradually and came from behind with a flash of speed to overpower the front-runners. He finally nosed out Costa Rica at the line while Me Raqsam third over two lengths behind while Bet Fair completed the frame, three-fourth of a length back.

Lucky owner Kashif Saeed Butt received the cup from LRC steward-elect Mahmood Khan soon after the race.

The victory of JF Thunder earned a well-deserved double for Tahir Abbas who a race earlier had piloted home bay colt Double Action, who defeat red-roan colt Big Foot by a neck in the fourth race. The mount was offered to him at the starting gate he substituted riding boy Imran Pervez.

Tahir Abbas' stars were on an upward curve as he went on to complete a hat-trick of victories while riding home brown colt Tiger Jet in the sixth and last race of the programme.

The top performer of the afternoon card was chestnut colt Double O Seven, who atoned for his defeat last time out by winning the second race by a handsome margin of eight lengths from bay filly Heart's Cry. Deenar Mirwani rode the winner who was trained by A.B. Malik for owner Syed Amir Raza Shah.

Midway through the proceedings the Lahore Race Club (LRC) announced on public address system that the next Lahore Winter Meeting will be held on Saturday instead of Sunday in lieu of the Eid-i-Milad-un-Nabi (PBUH) falling on the weekly holiday.

Results:

THE SIALKOT PLATE CLASS VII DIV V - 1,000M:

Bet Of The Day (K.A. Ahmed) 7-12, Munir Hussain 1; Artghal 8-4, Deenar Mirwani 2; Royal Winner 9-0, Tahir Abbas 3; Only Jutt 8-10, Mohammad Zulfiqar 4.

Won by Neck, A1/2...