MAHINDAR SINGH RATHORE

  THE PUBLIC HAS BEEN MURDERED IN PUNE! SEVEN RACES. SEVEN FAVOURITES DEFEATED. IS THIS THE FUTURE OF INDIAN HORSE RACING? PUNE, FRIDAY, 2ND OCTOBER 2026 What transpired at the Pune Race Course today was nothing short of a catastrophe for the betting public! Seven races were conducted. All seven favourites went down! Seven opportunities for the racing public to walk home with a smile turned into seven painful reminders of how badly the confidence of punters has eroded. Is this racing? Is this entertainment? Is this how a prestigious institution treats the very public whose participation keeps the sport alive? The cries of disappointed racegoers at Pune today should have shaken the corridors of power at RWITC. Instead, the familiar announcements continued, inviting the same battered public to return next week for the much-publicised Derby weekend! WHAT A MOCKERY OF PUBLIC SENTIMENT! The public is not an ATM machine to be repeatedly emptied and then invited back with glamorous announ...

 There was a time when the Bangalore Turf Club proudly announced the appointment of Australian racing official Wayne Wood as its Stipendiary Steward. The move was projected as a bold statement of intent, an assurance that Bangalore Racing was finally prepared to place integrity above influence and restore public confidence in a sport that desperately needed credibility. Here was a man with international experience, entrusted with the responsibility of enforcing the Rules of Racing without fear or favour. His appointment was expected to mark the beginning of a new era. Such expertise did not come cheaply. Wayne Wood was reportedly appointed on a remuneration that reflected his standing in international racing circles. The Club spared no expense because the message it wanted to send was clear: integrity had no price. Then came the reality -  Wayne Wood has resigned. His resignation is not merely the departure of one racing official. It is an indictment of a system that appears i...

  ENTHRALLING PUNE RACING SEASON 2026 SET TO CAPTIVATE RACING ENTHUSIASTS The stage is set for another exciting chapter in Indian horse racing as the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) prepares to host the Pune Racing Season 2026 , commencing on 17th July and concluding on 15th November 2026 . Spread over 21 race days across four months, the season promises a compelling blend of top-class competition, prestigious classics, and lucrative prize money, reaffirming Pune's reputation as one of India's premier racing centres. The official prospectus reveals that the season will offer stakes exceeding ₹14 crore , providing owners, trainers, jockeys, and breeders with an attractive incentive while ensuring racegoers witness high-quality contests week after week. With a carefully structured racing programme and strong professional participation, expectations are high for an outstanding season. The Crown Jewel – Villoo C. Poonawalla Pune Derby The undisputed highlight of the season...

  RACE CARDS SLACKEN IN BANGALORE TURF CLUB A Turf Tracker Perspective The Bangalore Summer Meeting 2026 has thrown up a worrying trend that deserves serious attention from everyone connected with the sport. Despite having a sizeable horse population, race cards have consistently been restricted to just six races on most racing days. For a racing centre of Bangalore's stature, this is certainly not an encouraging development. This season, Bangalore has approximately 650 local horses in training, supplemented by around 50 outstation horses . Compare this with earlier seasons, when the club regularly housed over 700 local horses along with nearly 100 outstation horses , and the decline in the number of runners becomes even more noticeable. With over 650 horses in training, one would normally expect race cards comprising seven, eight or even nine races on several occasions. Instead, framing even a six-race programme has become a weekly challenge. Of course, no experienced racing pro...

  HORSE RACING TRACKS CANNOT BE RELOCATED – GOVERNMENTS MUST STOP TREATING RACE COURSES AS REAL ESTATE By Mahindar Singh Rathore (TURF TRACKER) Every few years, the same debate resurfaces. Governments speak about expired leases, redevelopment plans, commercial projects, and relocating race courses as if a horse racing venue were nothing more than an old office building that can be shifted from one address to another. Nothing could be further from reality. A race course is not just a piece of land. It is a living sporting ecosystem built over generations. Those who casually suggest that a race course can simply be relocated have little understanding of what they are talking about. A world-class race course is the result of decades of planning, investment, experience and continuous maintenance. It consists of a scientifically designed racing track, multiple training tracks, hundreds of stables, veterinary hospitals, equine swimming pools, walking rings, saddling enclosures, paddock a...

  MYSORE RACE CLUB'S CONTROVERSIAL APPOINTMENT:  The recent appointment of S. Ravi Shanker as Stipendiary Steward by the Mysore Race Club has already sparked intense debate within racing circles. At a time when Indian horse racing is desperately trying to rebuild public confidence, the Mysore Race Club's decision to appoint an official whose tenure has frequently attracted criticism from sections of the racing fraternity raises serious questions. For years, racegoers, owners, punters and industry stakeholders have voiced concerns about inconsistent stewarding, questionable inquiries, lack of transparency and the apparent inability of racing authorities to convincingly address controversial rides and running patterns. Whether justified or not, these perceptions have contributed significantly to the growing distrust that surrounds the sport today. The question therefore is simple: Can an official associated in the minds of many racegoers with a period of declining confiden...