Vadream in the frame for swift return at Newcastle
Charlie Fellowes’ Vadream could switch back to the all-weather for Finals Day at Newcastle after her impressive Cammidge Trophy triumph at Doncaster on Saturday.
The five-year-old was in action early on in the year, running three times on the all-weather to secure a spot on Friday’s valuable card at Gosforth Park.
The intention was to keep her ticking over ahead of the turf season as she is a horse happier under a greater workload, a ploy that paid off when she was an easy four-and-a-half-length Listed winner on heavy ground on Town Moor.
Vadream is likely to take up a Good Friday entry, with Fellowes more inclined to target the six-furlong BetUK All-Weather Sprint Championships Conditions Stakes rather than the seven-furlong fillies’ and mares’ race she is also engaged in.
He said: “She has come out of the race really well, she takes her racing very well and is in good form. We have been discussing Good Friday and we are leaning towards going at this point.
“A decision hasn’t been made but we are leaning towards the six furlongs, she showed such a good turn of foot and I just think a stiff seven at Newcastle might be a bit too much.
“That does mean that we will lose the services of Kieran Shoemark as he’s booked to ride Diligent Harry, but we’ve got Hollie Doyle instead and she rode her absolutely beautifully at Ascot last season.”
Saturday’s victory was attributed partly to the testing ground, but also to some work the Fellowes team have done with the filly around exiting the stalls more sharply.
“She’s been a very frustrating filly to train, she’s always had the talent and ability but she’s also had this knack of just throwing her races away,” the trainer explained.
“She’s been slowly away which you just can’t do over six furlongs, you can’t give away lengths because the race is then over.
VADREAM (GB) wins the Listed Cammidge Trophy Stakes at @DoncasterRaces in impressive fashion for @FellowesRacing. 👏pic.twitter.com/LWMY0wBl3t
— GBRI (@GBRI_UK) April 1, 2023
“We have tried something different with how we load her into the stalls and how we ride her out of them and it seemed to have worked, Kieran gave her an excellent ride I thought.
“I’d like to see her do it again, I’d like her to back it up with another run like that and then I’ll start to get excited!”
Good Friday will come up quickly after her weekend efforts but Vadream thrives on racing and has produced some of her best runs when in the midst of a busy spell.
Fellowes said: “If anything it is the other way around – the more she runs, the better she is.
“If she’s too fresh she can get incredibly worked up and turn into a real handful, when she’s not left for too long before races she’s much happier and more settled. That’s why we ran her three times on the all weather before Doncaster, though those tracks didn’t always suit her.”
Vadream bolts up in the Cammidge for @FellowesRacing and @KShoemark pic.twitter.com/khZ4tfgWaK
— Nick Robson (@ValueRacingPlus) April 1, 2023
After Newcastle a return to the turf beckons, with targets on both side of the Irish Sea already identified and a step back to five furlongs not out of the question.
Fellowes said: “First we need to see how she goes on Good Friday, then it’s likely she’ll have, not a break as such, but a bit of a gap and then come back out for something like the Duke of York and then perhaps head to Ireland where you’re more likely to get a bit of cut in the ground.
“It might be that in very testing ground she could run over five, which would open up so many options.
“The Flying Five, Haydock Sprint Cup, Prix de l’Abbaye, Champions Day – there are so many races where you know you’re going to get cut in the ground.
“Before any of that though I want to see her do it again and hopefully on Good Friday she’ll produce something like she did at the weekend.”
