Awesome Act: excellent first step on Kentucky Derby trailin New York

  PICTURE: EquiSports Photos/Matt Wooley 

Decisive victory for Awesome Act in US

Report: USA, Saturday

Aqueduct: Gotham Stakes (Grade 3) 1m½f, dirt, 3yo

BRITAIN could havea legitimate Kentucky Derby contender on its hands after Awesome Act (Jeremy Noseda/Julien Leparoux) recorded a decisive victory on his seasonal debut in New York on Saturday.

He has been cut to a general 20-1 for the Churchill Downs Classic with British bookmakers.

Making his first start since finishing fourth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf, the Jeremy Noseda-trained three-year-old was sent off 2.85-1 favourite for the Grade 3 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct.

Encountering a dirt surface for the first time in his life, Awesome Act was always travelling comfortably in midpack under last year's Eclipse Award-winning rider Julien Leparoux before smoothly moving up to challenge on the far turn.

Four wide on entering the straight, the son of Breeders' Cup Classic winner Awesome Again shot clear approaching the furlong marker to claim the $250,000 event.

He easily held the late-running Yawanna Twist, who came through for the rear to takesecond place a length and a quarter behind.

"He handled the dirt today," said Noseda, who won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Lone Star Park with Wilko in 2004.

"You would think a horse by Awesome Again would handle the dirt.

"For the first time, it's all we could ask for," added the trainer. "He's a horse that is reminding me all the time of Wilko.

Jeremy Noseda: "dream lives on"

  PICTURE: Mark Cranham  

"I believed in this horse today. It was a good, solid race, but there were no graded-stakes winners. It's the first hurdle out of the way, so the dream lives on."

"We had the discussion about him possibly being a Derby horse after the Breeders' Cup. I stood up and said 'I believe I can do it from Europe.' Now he's been in America, and we can move forward."

Awesome Act, who stopped the clock at 1m43.85s, runs in the colours of Susan Roy, wife of the BHAchairman Paul Roy.

The colt won just a Goodwood maiden from six starts as a two-year-old but must now be regarded as a plausible contender for the Kentucky Derby after such an impressive comeback after a layoff - plus a reportedly interrupted preparation.

He is now likely to run in in the main New York trial for the Kentucky Derby, the Grade 1 Wood Memorial back at Aqueduct on April 3, before which he will be stabled with Steve Asmussen's team at Belmont Park.

"He just did everything perfect," winning rider Leparoux told the Blood-Horse.

"He broke well and appeared to get a good position around the first turn, relaxed on the backside, and he was good. He was beyond good on the dirt; it didn't matter to him at all.

"He just did everything on his own, he put me in the right spots, and then he just finished very nice. I think more distance will be good."