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Impending Impresses At Trials

The promise of Spring success was offered by the lightly-raced colt Impending on a day of trials at Warwick Farm on Friday, August 12 that revealed plenty more Godolphin prospects for the coming season.
Mike Hedge

The promise of Spring success was offered by the lightly-raced colt Impending on a day of trials at Warwick Farm on Friday, August 12 that revealed plenty more Godolphin prospects for the coming season.

In the company of such established performers Hauraki, It's Somewhat, Old North and Telperion (John O’Shea/James McDonald), Impending gave strong indications that he would be entitled to a place in the better three-year-old races of the Sydney and Melbourne Spring Carnivals.

The son of Lonhro showed good gate speed in his 1000m trial, settling outside the older and more experienced stakes-winner Famous Seamus and cruising past that horse in the final 100m without being pushed.

“He jumped well and put himself up on the speed, he relaxed nicely. didn’t want to overdo it,” O’Shea said.

“When James McDonald asked him for an effort he closed off well. He’s got a lot of improvement fitness-wise which is encouraging and he seemed to come out of the trial well.”

Impending, who won on debut at Randwick in April and at his only other start was placed at G3 level, is from one of Darley Australia’s best-producing mares, Mnemosyne, a G1 winner of the Thousand Guineas who has produced four winners from her five foals to race.

O’Shea was also encouraged by the efforts of Telperion who finished a nice second in his 1000m trial.

The son of Street Cry finished off his juvenile season with great promise, running a luckless fourth in the G1 Golden Slipper and then ending the preparation with second place in the G1 Sires Produce Stakes.

“He’s got a lot of condition on him and he closed off quite nicely in a fast-run trial,” O’Shea said.

“James McDonald rode him and he was very happy with the run.”

Telperion was accompanied in his trial by the G2 winner Old North, the mare Alucinari and the UK G1 Eclipse Stakes winner and dual Australian graded winner, It’s Somewhat.

All pleased their trainer, racing comfortably and finishing on the bridle, with Old North (Brenton Avdulla) possibly showing the most of those behind Telperion.

“It was his first trial this time in so he was a little bit fresh … he was a little bit keen, feeling above himself, but he stayed on the bridle throughout the trial,” O’Shea said.

Others among the Godolphin team to impress included Hauraki (Tim Clark), a Derby placegetter at three who again raced well last season, the stakes-winner Tessera (Brenton Avdulla) and the filly Painted Firetail (James McDonald).

O’Shea said of Tessera: “When the rider dropped his hands he was a bit too relaxed, but once he gave him a bit of a squeeze at the top of the straight he finished off the trial nicely. We’re very happy with him.”

In the first trial of her current preparation, Painted Firetail impressed in her trial over 800m.

“She began well and travelled really comfortable and never left the bridle. She seems a lot stronger and has spelled well,” O’Shea said.

The Warwick Farm trials also marked the public return to the saddle of Godolphin’s retained Australian jockey James McDonald following his successful UK riding stint.