After a long wait between wins, Adrian Bott was pleased to see former import Newfoundland return to the winner’s circle with a narrow victory in the Listed Australia Day Cup at Warwick Farm.
The son of Japanese sire Deep Impact showed enough during his brief career in Ireland to earn a trip to Australia with connections targeting staying races, and while he fell short in last year’s Adelaide Cup, this latest win puts him back on track for another tilt in March.
The seven-year-old was second-up after finishing fifth over 2000 metres at Randwick on December 27.
“He’s been a very honest horse for us and connections, and it is great to see him winning again,” Bott said.
“His first-up run was short of his best and that was a month ago. He seems to do well with his races spaced.
“There’s not too much of him condition-wise but he seems to appreciate that and once he can get over a bit of ground, he needs the right races and the right conditions so we’re picking our mark and today looked to be a lovely target for him.
“The Adelaide Cup has been the long term plan for him and he ran very well in it last year and was even a tough unlucky. He seems to have matured a bit and improved this time around.”
Race favourite Future History ($2.60) led into the straight but faded late, with Newfoundland ($4.20) edging out Age Of Sail ($10) by a nose, while Elliptical ($6) finished 1¼ lengths away in third.
The Group 2 Adelaide Cup (3200m) is scheduled to be run at Morphettville on March 9.
Those assessing the form from the Australia Day Cup can review the latest betting markets for the race ahead of the staying features.
The post Newfoundland gets the bob in Australia Day Cup first appeared on Just Horse Racing.