Chance to make an Impact at Newcastle
Britain's turf season may be over for another year, but with six all-weather racecourses plus Dundalk in Ireland there are plenty of opportunities for trainers to run a late-maturing two-year-old.
Newmarket trainer David Simcock (pictured) achieves his aim of giving Lethal Impact racecourse experience before a winter break when running the colt in a maiden (16.20) at Britain's newest all-weather venue, Newcastle, this afternoon. A son of Japan's champion sire, Deep Impact, Lethal Impact was bought as a foal at the Japan Horse Racing Association's July Select Sale in 2014.
His dam, Musical Way, a Group Two winner in France, had been purchased at Tattersalls' December Sale for 300,000gns at the conclusion of her career, when the buyer was Katsumi Yoshida, the head of Japan's Northern Farm. The Yoshida brothers Katsumi and Teryua have been major buyers of European bloodlines for a couple of decades, and frequently source Group-race winning fillies.
Simcock, who describes Lethal Impact as ‚"a lovely middle-distance prospect for the future‚", adds: ‚"He travelled up to Newcastle yesterday and took it all in his stride. It is a competitive maiden for this time of year, but it will be good to get a run into him with very much a three-year-old career in front of him.‚"
Sydney trainer Chris Waller has issued an upbeat report on Endless Drama following the colt's unplaced run in Saturday's Gr.1 Emirates Stakes at Flemington Park in Melbourne. Well placed with two furlongs to run, Endless Drama faded back through the field, but it was his first start for Waller since he switched from Ger Lyons' stable. Waller said: "He simply was just a bit fresh, jumped [from the stalls] too well and was just working too hard throughout the race on a day when you needed cover. There was a very strong cross wind.
"He had a good blow, but recovered okay so we will start from scratch and gradually take him through his distances - I am looking forward to the [Australian] autumn with him."
Photograph: Laurence Squire