Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks Race Preview
Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks is a 2400m Grade 1 race. In an era where shorter distances dominate the calendar, the Indian Oaks is one of the few contests focusing on stayers.
There are five “Classic” races in the Indian racing calendar. The Mumbai Mahalaxmi Racecourse which comes under Royal Western India Turf Club will host one of these epic contests on Sunday, 16th of January, 2021. The Indian Oaks, currently known as the Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks is in its 79th edition this year.
With its first run in 1943-44, this historic race is open only to four-year-old fillies. Over the years, several legendary horses have won the Indian Oaks. HER MAJESTY, GAMBLE FOR LOVE, TOSCA, GOLDEN TREASURE, and JACQUELINE are all past winners of the Indian Oaks.
ALJ Taib and Uttam Singh are the most successful trainers in Indian Oaks history, having won the event 7 times each. Taib even holds the unique distinction of winning the race in three consecutive seasons – that too on two separate occasions.
Recent years’ trends for the Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks show some patterns that may be of interest to punters. No filly has won the race on her first outing at Mumbai. The stud Multidimensional has sired at least four winners in the last decade.
Coming to the actual race itself, the Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks is a 2400m Grade 1 race. In an era where shorter distances dominate the calendar, the Indian Oaks is one of the few contests focusing on stayers.
The race is the 7th out of 9 on Sunday at the Mahalaxmi racecourse, with a scheduled start time of 3:45 PM. It is only for 4-year-old fillies and no allowances are given. The total prize purse for this race is INR 39,18,367.
In a major event like this, the field is often quite small. That continues to be the case for The Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks – there are only 5 fillies in the running. Let’s take a closer look at the odds for these fillies in The Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks.
ODDS TO WIN The The Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks
You can find the horses with the best odds to win The Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks below:
| S No | Horse | Odds On Betway |
| 1 | Aah Bella | 5.00 |
| 2 | Animous | 10.00 |
| 3 | Hela | 6.00 |
| 4 | Miracle | 2.00 |
| 5 | Song Song Blue | 15.00 |
It is not very easy to predict the outcome of a horse race. That is what makes the whole affair so fascinating from a gambling perspective. But this edition of The Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks has an unmistakable air of predictability about it.
#4 Miracle is in blazing form with seven consecutive wins and has not lost even once in her career so far. She is up against four fillies who are maidens. Her trainer P Shroff is a serial winner in this contest. Her sire Multidimensional has 5 winners in the Indian Oaks since 2010.
On paper at least, things can’t get any more lopsided than this. The only factor that throws a shade of uncertainty into the proceedings is Miracle’s lack of previous experience racing at 2400m. But still, she has shown her capacity to win longer distances at 2000m, and she is several steps above the competition in terms of racing experience as well.
It is unmistakable – this is Miracle’s race to lose. If any of the other fillies win the race, it will be a major upset. As she is a clear favorite, the payouts on a win are also low. Mircale has odds of 2.00 on Betway which gives her an implied win probability of 50.00%. An INR 100 bet will yield a similar amount on odds of 2.00.
Of the four, two are step-siblings of Miracle, sired by Multidimensional – #1Aah Bella and #3Hela. These two have the best odds of spoiling Miracle’s party. An INR 100 bet should yield INR 500-600 in return should they defeat Miracle.
Aah Bella has the best odds of putting pressure on Miracle. But it is a slim edge over Hela as there is not much separating the duo. The odds are heavily stacked against the remaining two fillies according to the top horse race betting sites.
Recommended Betting Tip: Miracle (2.00)
HOW TO BET ON The Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks
Ideally, you should be making a beeline to the Mahalaxmi racecourse in Mumbai to enjoy one of the biggest race days of the Indian calendar in person. That way, you can also place bets at the tote betting counters on-premises at the race club.
The RWITC also has off-course betting counters across multiple locations in Mumbai and Pune that will accept bets from punters who cannot make a trip to the racing venue.
But in the current pandemic situation, venturing outside for anything is a risk. The safest and most convenient option then is to place bets online. It is incredibly easy, as you will learn from our guide on live horse race betting.
There are many reputed online betting sites accepting wagers on THE VILLOO C. POONAWALLA INDIAN OAKS. You can try out any one of these sites for a safe online horse betting experience:
Villoo C. Poonawalla Indian Oaks – RACECARD, RACECOURSE, HORSES & JOCKEY DETAILS
All five horses in this race are fillies, with the same 57 weight rating. But as for the pre-race rating of the contestants, there is a massive gulf between the tote favorite and the rest – the spread is skewed between 23 on the lower end and 80 at the top!
Let’s take a closer look at all the runners for this event:
1. aah bella– multidimensional (IRE) -secret garden
The bay filly is one of the three in this race with Multidimensional as her sire. She comes from the stables of trainer Imtiaz Sait. As a maiden, she is yet to win a race in her career. Her 4 outings have yielded second place and fourth place.
Aah Bella has not raced at any higher class races or distances over 1800m. The Indian Oaks will be her first outing in both categories. Her recent record is 7-7-2-4, giving her a modest 48 rating – the second highest in the racecard. PS Chouhan will ride her for the Indian Oaks.
2. animous – ampere (fr) -westphalia
The 26-rated Animous is another maiden running the fourth race of her career. The last 3 outings have resulted in one third-place finish. Animous is trained by Karthik Ganapathy. Her recent record is 5-3-7.
She has only raced at distances of 1600m maximum. Bhawani Singh was her jockey in all events. On Sunday, Neeraj Rawal will be in the saddle for the first time. Animous carries a low rating of 26 for this race.
3. hela– multidimensional (ire) -fond fantasy
Another filly sired by Multidimensional, Hela is a stablemate of Animous. Trainer Karthik Ganapathy has decided to switch jockey Bhawani Singh from Animous to Hela for some reason.
Hela has run 4 races so far, with her longest race having a distance of 1800m. She has a lone third-place finish to name, with a recent record of 12-6-3-6. Her rating is 23 for this race.
4. miracle – multidimensional (IRE) -khalila(USA)
A career run of 7 straight wins – all of them at black-type events – makes Miracle the hottest prospect in this race. Her trainer P Shroff has won numerous times in the Indian Oaks in recent years.
Miracle has also shown her mettle in longer distances, winning the Golden Jubilee Deccan Derby (2000m). PS Chouhan will ride this tote favorite on Sunday. Her rating is 80 for this race – a clear indicator of the gulf in quality between her and the rest of the pack.
5. song song blue – sussex (AUS)-royal sword
Trained by Subhag Singh, Song Song Blue is a chestnut filly running a race that has not been won by a horse with that coat in the last decade. But even otherwise, the odds are stacked heavily against this maiden with a 24-rating.
Her recent form is quite poor – 13-8-9-7 – marking her out as a probable also-ran. The closest she has been to a 2400m race was in her last outing, which was an 1800m race. TS Jodha will ride her on Sunday.