LAHORE, Dec 20: Three-year-old chestnut colt Dubai Fan seems well-placed in handicap to win the December Cup to go over 1,200 metres during the Lahore winter meeting at the Racecourse on Sunday.

The promising colt from Dubai Edition out-of-Fanim, an English mare, Dubai Fan ran off the frame after winning two races and then was placed second behind stable fancy Punjabi on Nov 30.

Owned by Syed Pervez Hussain and trained by Sohail Aziz, Dubai Fan may face a stiff challenge from the fast improving filly owned by Mirza Khurshid Baig and another filly Lucky Cat, owned by Malik Hamid Ali Noon.

Colt Headingley is also a contestant in this race but he is placed on top of the handicap with the top weight of 10-10. Hence out of question. This will be the fifth race of the day.

In the fourth and supporting event, The Mustang Plate, class V, division I and II over 1,200 metres, the highly-bred filly Philogyny looks a cut above in class vis-s-vis her six rivals.

The filly from Behri ou-of-Cheacheapeau, Philogyny had already won the Khalid Bin Waleed cup, run over 1,300 metres on Nov 30. This time she will be going 100 metres less in distance but even then she should have no difficulty in braving her rivals challenge.

In the third race, an 11-runner field packed with half-a-dozen good sprinters is to face the starter. Of them three are very good performers, namely, Royal Passion, Magic Queen and Pretty Girl. They should fight it out in the same order too.

Rania, Zoaq, Geo Bhakkar and Harry Can Run look good in the 16-runner strong field for the second race. A close competition is expected in this event, a class VI, division I race run over 1,200 metres.

Khuddar, Fakhar-e-Silakot and Amazing Boy mark attention to pick up the spoils in the opener. They should be finishing in the same order.

The number of entries in races seems to be on a steady decline. As a result 65 horses have been accepted for six events barring last-minute withdrawals.

The major cause apparently is an unattractive amount of purses offered to the owners, who shy away from entering their horses in the races unless, they feel their charges are a sure bet for a win or place.

Secondly, the handicap is not based in the generally accepted principle all over the world which is equalising the chances of all horses in the contest for supremacy.

At present the handicap is based on a guidelines format handed out to the handicapper with a set of plus and minus pounds to follow it blindly.

This is also the major factor of bookmakers’ grouse, whose number too has shown a downward slide. It is interesting to note that the bookmakers directly or indirectly own the majority of horses.

Although the conditions and ground realities may have changed towards betterment after the recent elections of the Lahore Race Club (LRC) stewards, there is still room for more improvement.

Then there seems to be some uneasiness prevailing among the stewards belonging to the rivals’ groups, who contested elections following a clear divide among members. The sooner both groups accept reality, the better will it be in the larger interest of racing and the club.

A card of six events will be decided on Sunday. All races will be contested over the sprinting distance of 1,200 metres. The first race will be held at 12.30pm.

Following is the field and our selections:

JALLO PLATE CLASS VI DIV II 1,200M:

Cleopatra 9-0, Maharani 9-0, Wrestler 8-10, Khuddar 8-10, Dizzy Heights 8-10,

Amazing Boy 8-10, Mirana Shaheen 8-9, Fakhar-e-Sialkot 7-12, Jurrat 7-12, Uncle 7-8.

Win: Khuddar.

Place: Amazing Boy and Fakhar-e-Sialkot.

JALLO PLATE CLASS VI DIV I 1,200M:

Rania 9-2, Daoud Princess 9-0, One By One 9-0, Greyish 9-0, Tripple Star 8-12, Geo Bhakkar 8-12, Julie 8-10, Singhar 8-10, Shamsun Nisa 8-10, Zoaq 8-10, Zafeer 8-10, Dream Memories 8-10, Harry Can Run 8-6, Ice Burg 8-4, Sabbat Qadam 8-2.

Win: Rania.

Place: Harry Can Run and Zoaq.

MASTUNG PLATE CLASS V

DIV II 1,200M:

Mikkado 9-0, Alishba 9-0, Shim Jim 8-12, Empire Maker 8-10, Royal Passion 8-10, Notia 8-10, Pretty Girl 8-10, Magic Queen 8-6, Ocean Song 8-6, Brave Heart 8-2, Future Perfect 7-12.

Win: Royal Passion.

Place: Pretty Girl and Magic Queen.

MASTUNG PLATE CLASS V

DIV I AND II 1,200M:

Richy Dancer 9-0, Will He Wish 8-10, Philogyny 8-5, Pick Of The Day 8-1, Legend Setter 7-10, Janu 7-10, Sweet Lady 7-8.

Win: Philogyny.

Place: Pick Of The Day and Legend Setter.

DECEMBER CUP CLASS IV

DIV I, II AND III 1,200M:

Headingley 10-10, Valenday 10-6, Punjabi 10-0, Lucifer 9-6, Apex 8-8, Lucky Cat 8-2, Tipu Sultan 7-12, Great Memories 7-8, Dubai Fan 7-6.

Win: Dubai Fan.

Place: Lucky Cat and Great Memories.

JALLO PLATE CLASS VI DIV III

AND IV 1,200M:

Stride To Moment 9-0, Dream Act 8-12, Sun Downer 8-6, Victory Rose 8-2, Red Carpet 7-13, Golden Falcon 7-12, Kamla 7-12, See Of Silence 7-10, Mama Mia 7-6, Murad The Great 7-6, Silent Assassin 7-4.

Win: Red Carpet.

Place: Dream Act and Stride To Moment.