Encino Makes Winning Start To Pune Campaign With Dominant Atomic Prince Plate Triumph

Pune: Encino, the four-year-old gelding trained by Adhiraj S. Jodha, made a sparkling start to his Pune campaign by capturing the Atomic Prince Plate, the feature event on the second day of the Pune racing season at the Pune Race Course on Friday.

Confidently ridden by A. Sandesh, Encino produced an impressive performance to storm clear of his rivals and register a commanding victory by more than five lengths over Fighton in the six-furlong contest.

The Jodha-trained runner travelled comfortably throughout before quickening decisively in the home straight, leaving the rest of the seven-horse field with no chance of catching him.

In contrast, tote favourite Sun Of A Gun endured a disappointing outing. Expected to put up a strong challenge, the fancied runner failed to raise a gallop and finished a well-beaten last, much to the surprise of racegoers.

Encino's emphatic success provided trainer Adhiraj S. Jodha with an ideal start to the Pune season and underlined the gelding's ability to be a force in the sprinting division in the weeks ahead.