Exciting juvenile Kinross enters Vertem Futurity picture after Newcastle switch

Kinross, who earned a stratospheric Racing Post Rating of 101 on his Newmarket debut, could tackle the Vertem Futurity Trophy Stakes at Newcastle on Friday evening after the Group 1 was rearranged from waterlogged Doncaster.

Trained by Ralph Beckett, Kinross will also be among the entries for the Group 3 Horris Hill, salvaged from Newbury's cancelled meeting on Saturday and set to be run at Newmarket seven days later.

The Vertem Futurity Trophy, which has been added to Newcastle's existing eight-race card having been cancelled on Saturday, will be the first Group 1 staged on an artificial surface in Britain.

Kinross, a spectacular eight-length winner on debut, had been the short-priced favourite for the original Horris Hill and Beckett said: "He will have an entry at Newcastle and he'll also be in the Horris Hill as well and we'll have a look at both races and decide. The ground will be one of the factors, as will the opposition."

The rearranged Group 1 could theoretically have been run on turf at Newmarket but Beckett said: "I can see why they've gone for Newcastle, it makes very good sense.

"The prize-money aspect is important and it has remained the same by running it at Newcastle, so for that reason alone I think everyone's in favour of it being run at Newcastle."

Kameko: the sole British representative among 12 original acceptors for the VertemCredit: Mark Cranham (racingpost.com/photos)

Another trainer in favour of the switch is Andrew Balding, who intends to run Kameko on Friday, while Aidan O'Brien is likely to send the same five horses who were due to oppose him at Doncaster, led by Mogul and Innisfree.

"It's still the intention to run Kameko," said Balding. "It changes the dynamic of the race certainly, but I'm in full approval and agreement with the move. I think it's important to have the race. Of course it's a very different test, but it's much better to have the race than not.

"We know we'll get a sound surface and we're very grateful to everyone for making it happen."

O'Brien, who has not had a runner at Newcastle since the Flat track switched to a Tapeta surface, said: "Newcastle is a good track and if the horses are well we'll look forward to running them there. That's the way we're thinking at the moment."

The race has reverted to the original entries. In addition, it has been reopened so new entries can be made by noon on Monday.

Despite reverting back to the entry stage, Saeed bin Suroor and Charlie Appleby have confirmed Autumn Stakes one-two Military March and Al Suhail will not be running, while Roger Varian has drawn stumps for the season with Molatham.

Brian Meehan's Sound Of Cannons is another unlikely runner having finished fourth in Saturday's Group 1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud.

The decision to switch to Tapeta will undoubtedly change the dynamics of the race. Racing Post Ratings two-year-old handicapper Simon Turner explores the impact it will have on the race.

It's a sensible move. In an ideal world the race would have been contested at Doncaster but if any British all-weather track is suited to stage a Group 1 two-year-old race over a mile it's Newcastle.

After an initial outcry at the switch from turf to Tapeta, Newcastle has seen year-on-year growth in terms of quality of the racing staged there. Enable is an obvious example of a top-class performer who kicked off their career at Newcastle and only this week Temple Of Heaven, sent off joint favourite for this year's Windsor Castle Stakes at Royal Ascot, posted a RPR of 104 when winning a two-year-old fast-track qualifier.

Friday's Group 1 field will face a very different test than at Doncaster, but nevertheless a very fair one. Turf and the all-weather are like night and day. If it had been run at Doncaster it would have been heavy ground, which would have been an exacting test of stamina. The other's going to be run on Tapeta, so they'll need to handle the all-weather in what will be a less gruelling race.

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