With a cold eye (24 November)
Analysis of Sunday’s races.
I. Trotters, 2,600 m
Nitisa Josselyn will be a strong favourite. Quan de Bourgogne will start day by day, but this is nothing unusual in the trotting rivalry, because they even race twice a day (e.g. Nitisa in Prague). Qualmina performed quite well last Saturday. Samba de l’Etang, Pepite Gede and Siblis d’Alci seem to be weaker. An interesting horse is four-year old Vahine du Lys, freshly purchased in France (8 November). Her trip to Poland took seven days. Her environment and food changed. She had only a few trainings, therefore, her owner, trainer and harness driver Roman Mateusiak is not sure how this mighty mare will perform on a grassy, ??soft track, on which she will race for the first time. ‘Of course, if I could win, I would be very pleased, but it can be very difficult’, said R. Mateusiak.
II. Hcp Gr. IV, 3-year old and older, 1,600 m
Dasko (59 kg) and Bilberry (61.5) stand out from other horses. Theoretically, the stallion that will bear this time the lower weight than the mare, and previously was carrying 4.5 kg more, seems to have a better chance. Imola SQ (64.5) is in the form, but the extra weight can be a problem for her. Kaprys (48.5) and Hermione Marie will benefit from lower weight. Who knows, maybe they will join the competition for paid positions. Kore, Bella Barsa, Szampanka (Szymczuk will ride instead of Piątkowski) and Informatyka present a similar, average level. There is no result for this race that could be surprising.
III. Savvannah Award (Series B), 3-year-old Arabians (Polish Arabian Stud Book), 2,000 m
Ahmad fought to the end in the previous performance and he, along with quite evenly running Wilden, will be a pair of favourites. Cepton has also recently gathered good notes, while Nicolas and Sange have run below expectations. Milan AB seems to be the weakest.
IV. 4-year old and older Arabians, Gr. III, 2,000 m
Auza, which used to race with stronger horses, will probably be the favourite. A week ago, mare FF Matrah and geldings Merlini and Esteem took part in the competition. The mare was better than the first gelding by three lengths, and than the second gelding by four lengths. Elegra disappointed us, although she managed to stay ahead of Prince Kalipo by 0.5 length. This time, the stallion will be in a better position, because he will carry three kilograms less than before, while the mare will carry only two kilograms less. Ganim is quite good, while two last performances of Esteem were weaker. Frula made a surprise on a highly flexible track at the beginning of the season. Stubborn Araxus is the weakest.
V. 4-year-old and older, Gr. IV, 1,200 m
Persei, Sundari, Domitto and Quinoline should take top positions in this race. The other three horses are most likely to struggle for last paid places.
VI. 3-year old Arabians, Gr. II, 1,600 m
Moderate favourites will be Faoud ‘G’, Zejda and Poliadora. Perhaps, Overton, Surma and French bred Al Kazar de Chalain will enter the fight. Falon achieved weaker results, but you can not completely cross him out. The last two starts were poor for Eudurance A.
VII. Stanisław Sałagaj Cup 2-year-old, Gr. II, 1,600 m
The second performance was quite good for Tudello and he together with the most experienced Soprane Clokeer and perhaps Newamn should take front positions. A little weaker seem to be Nejran, Nando of Budyšin, Agra, and the weakest Ari.
VIII. Neman Award (cat. B). 2-year-old, 1,400 m
The fight for the victory is most likely to take place between Predator and Dolomiti. Dabby is quite good and Polemos has not yet been sufficiently tested. Navos and Sopran Gigli are fairly without chance in such company.
IX. End-of-Season Award 3-year-old and older Gr. I, 2,400 m
Highly flexible track is convenient for those horses that run with lower weight: Suo (55), Szarif (55) and Dżordżeta (54). Frenchie Lebec (59) raced with the best horses. Only Aischylos (60) is in a good shape, but the distance of 2,400 m may turn out too long for him. Young Boy can not find his place in autumnal conditions, while they are favourable to Tropical Flay, which won this race last year. Nerio seems to be an outsider.
