Having trained 1000 winners in horse racing, consistency is the hallmark of trainer Prasad

Prasad Raju was adjudged ‘champion trainer’ for four consecutive seasons from 2007 - 2010 in the Winter Season only

Hyderabad: For KSV Prasad Raju, life without being with the horses can be so different. Every day, when he gets up, he loves to be with them, or else, by his own confession, things don’t work out the way he loves to.

And, so when the 57-year-old Prasad Raju joined the ‘select band’ of trainers who have completed the fantastic feat of training 1000 winners in horse racing.

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“Well, I got fascinated with horses ever since I used to accompany my father, KRK Raju, to the Hyderabad Race Club, and once I got the trainer’s licence in 1995, there was no looking back,” says Prasad Raju in a chat with ‘Telangana Today’.

“In a career spanning three decades, I have had the pleasure of scripting winners in six Classics, including the prestigious 2017 Pune Derby (Lady In Lace), which also happens to be my first Derby winner.
The other big wins include the Indian 1000 Guineas at Mumbai, in addition to Juvenile Million, Fillies Championship and the 1000 Guineas at Hyderabad and Karnataka Mile Championship Cup in Bengaluru,” he recalled with a justifiable sense of pride.

“Yes, I am grateful to jockey Suraj Narredu for playing a big role in my achievement as he won 280 races for me,” he said.

Consistency seems to be a hallmark of Prasad Raju, as he was also adjudged ‘champion trainer’ for four consecutive seasons from 2007 – 2010 in the Winter Season only.

For the record, in the list of the big achievers trainers, L D’ Silva (about 1800 winners) tops it, followed by LVR Deshmukh, D Netto and Prasad Raju.

The B.Com graduate from Badruka College said that racing had certainly become very expensive, especially with the soaring maintenance costs every month.

“To be frank, unless the Central Government slashes the existing GST drastically, the future of racing looks very bleak,” Prasad Raju said.
“It seems racing as such is on the decline due to a combination of factors, and there are very few genuine buyers now,” he added.

“The biggest challenge, as they say in any sport, is learning every day. Definitely, I have seen the best of racing till pre-Covid era,”
Prasad Raju said.

Did you set any more targets? “No, nothing like that. I just thought of completing 1000 winners, and I am glad that I achieved it. And I repeat, thanks to Narredu, all the owners for their wonderful
support,” Prasad Raju said.

“Let us all hope, racing regains its past glory if there is a rethink on slashing the GST,” he signed off.