The G1 Vertem Futurity Trophy, called off at Doncaster on Saturday due to severe rains, has drawn 17 entries for its new slot at Newcastle on Friday, where it will be Britain's first Group 1 race run over a synthetic surface.
Aidan O'Brien, who fielded five of the six initial entries, once again dominates, with nine of the 17. Four of those, headed by favoured 'TDN Rising Star' Mogul (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), remain engaged, with Louisiana (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) pulled out. O'Brien has put Hong Kong (American Pharoah), New World Tapestry (War Front), San Pedro (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}), Wichita (Ire) (No Nay Never) and Year of the Tiger (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) into contention.
O'Brien told Sky Sports Racing, “Obviously the turf is what we would have preferred, but that's just not the way it is. Newcastle, I think, is a very good all-weather track.”
Qatar Racing's Kameko (Kitten's Joy), the only horse originally slated to take on the Ballydoyle brigade at Doncaster, remains engaged, and the owner's racing manager David Redvers said of the colt who has been just touched off a few times in top company this season, “The horse did a sensational piece of work last week and [trainer] Andrew [Balding] was busting to run him, understandably, because he hasn't had a horse like this for a while. We've got to go [to Newcastle] and now I hope conditions might suit us a little bit better.
“At the end of the day, if Newcastle is seen to be that fair and sound a surface that John Gosden is going to start off fillies like Enable there, then why shouldn't we have a Group 1 run on that surface? Either you just consign all-weather racing to being the cheap winter fodder that we're not interested in, or you actually accept there are times when it's the perfect place to run this sort of race.”
'TDN Rising Star' Kinross (GB) (Kingman {GB}) is an intriguing addition to the race, and John Gosden has engaged two, Cherokee Trail (War Front) and Verboten (Ire) (No Nay Never).
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