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Scaramouche is strongly tipped to win the Free Press Journal Trophy at Mumbai’s Mahalaxmi Racecourse after a narrow defeat earlier this season. With a better start expected, the gelding looks set to perform well. Big Bay and Cellini are likely to be key challengers in the competitive sprint race.

After missing the kick by a narrow margin when the gates flew open last time, Scaramouche will be eager to make amends and is strongly fancied to land the Free Press Journal Trophy, the feature event on the 18th day of the Mumbai racing season, scheduled to be held at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse on Saturday.

The Behram Cama-trained gelding had endured a frustrating outing earlier this season in the Coromandel Gromor Million, powered by Coromandel International Ltd, where he finished second to Social Butterfly. Despite the sluggish start, Scaramouche showed remarkable recovery to close the gap, eventually going down by a margin of just one and a quarter lengths. With a cleaner break expected this time, he looks primed to turn the tables and assert his dominance in what appears to be a competitive field.

Among his chief rivals will be Big Bay, representing the successful father-son combination of Yash Narredu and trainer Mallesh Narredu. The gelding had a minor setback after being found with a gum injury during routine examination by the Club’s Senior Veterinary Officer. However, having since been declared fit to race, Big Bay has reportedly been in fine condition during trackwork. As the youngest runner among the seven-horse field, he brings freshness and potential, and could pose a serious challenge over the six-furlong sprint.

Another runner who cannot be overlooked is Cellini, who has been showing steady signs of progress in recent workouts. Though yet to deliver a standout performance, the gelding appears to be peaking at the right time and could well catch the eye of the judges if he manages to translate his track form into race-day success.