Favourites strutted into Sunday`s Bangalore races wearing crowns of confidence, but racing, as always, had a wicked sense of humour. While Alfonsine strengthened his grip on the Karnataka Mile Championship with another authoritative display, the heavily-hyped Aristocratic Queen discovered that auctions don`t guarantee coronations. Upsets, shattered betting slips and dramatic comebacks that weren`t quite comebacks ensured the afternoon delivered everything racing promises, except predictability.

S. John-trained Alfonsine is turning this Bangalore season into a one-horse show. The four-year-old chalked up his fourth win from just five starts while annexing the 1600 metres Karnataka Mile Championship Cup, the feature event. The contest had been marketed as a heavyweight duel between Alfonsine and Mayne Magic, but the script lasted only until the gates opened. Yash Narredu seized the initiative, dictated terms from the front and never gave the opposition a sniff. By the time Mayne Magic remembered he was supposed to challenge, Alfonsine had already sent the invitation to the winner`s enclosure.

Hyderabad`s dependable Nonpariel briefly threatened to turn the duel into a three-way debate but was left arguing over second place, narrowly missing out. Alfonsine`s uncontested lead proved priceless. He pinched enough ground early to make Mayne Magic`s customary late flourish little more than an exercise in damage control. Once a serial winner with seven victories on the trot, Mayne Magic now appears to have developed an allergy to the winning post, finishing second in all three starts this season, twice behind Alfonsine, and still waiting to break a victory drought stretching beyond 300 days.

The Esquire Plate (Div I) delivered the afternoon`s most expensive reality check. Aristocratic Queen, bought at auction for a princely sum and backed as though the race had been cancelled in her favour, was such a certainty that bookmakers offered odds with all the enthusiasm of a taxpayer writing a cheque. Racing, however, delights in shredding certainty. Auspicious King ignored the royal coronation plans, shot to the front, pinched a decisive break and refused to abdicate. Aristocratic Queen charged home with purpose but discovered, rather painfully, that kings don`t surrender crowns just because queens arrive fashionably late. She went down by half a length while Zakharova trailed in a distant third, over eight lengths away.

The lower division, thankfully for favourite backers, lived up to its name with Act of Kindness performing exactly that. Trevor Patel barely had to ask the question as the short-priced filly coasted home by over three lengths. Darringer finished second ahead of Sindoor. There had been inspired support for Iron Flame, but the filly veered out at the start, raced as though GPS had failed and never recovered.

If punters thought the shocks were over, Ziva had other ideas. Lokanath`s surprise specialist struck again in the Admiral Henry John Rous Trophy, appearing almost from another postcode in the final furlong before sweeping past everything in sight. Long shot Stravinsky grabbed second after edging out Sassy Sarah and Badshaah in a blanket finish. Favourite Siege Storm, despite attracting the loudest applause in the betting ring after being gelded, ran more like a gentle drizzle, fading tamely to finish last.

The Salazaar Plate turned into a painful lesson in the dangers of betting on comeback stories. James McKeown`s John Wick, returning after an absence of 558 days and backed almost entirely on the strength of an eye-catching mock race, attracted one-way traffic in the market. Unfortunately, the script belonged in a tragedy rather than an action film. The gelding burst a blood vessel during the race and the avalanche of money vanished faster than popcorn at an interval. Aquastic, available at rewarding odds despite solid credentials, grabbed the race by the scruff of the neck and dismissed stablemate Stellantis with ease. NRI Ace nosed out Rodney for third.

McKeown wasn`t done unsettling punters. He struck back in the Lumbini Stud Plate (Div I) when Akitania, partnered by apprentice Sachin, pinched an early advantage and clung on gamely from the fast-finishing Perfect Attitude. The favourite had to negotiate traffic before launching his challenge and found the winning post arriving a heartbeat too soon. Sapporo finished a close third, while heavily supported Eagle Eye proved to be anything but.

The lower division restored some normality. Valiant Stream, heavily backed from Sulaiman Attaollahi`s stable, justified the confidence with a dominant front-running display, quickening clear on the home turn to score by an ever-growing five lengths. Joondalup chased home the winner ahead of Small Dreams.