Wichita could be Futurity wildcard as rescheduled Group 1 attracts 17 entries

Aidan O'Brien has shuffled his deck for Friday's rescheduled Vertem Futurity Trophy Stakes with Dewhurst third Wichita an exciting possible contender for the Group 1 contest at Newcastle.

Wichita was due to run at Longchamp on Sunday in the Criterium International, but the testing underfoot conditions led connections to scratch the colt on the morning of the race.

Instead, the son of No Nay Never – a wide-margin winner of the Somerville Tattersalls Stakes at Newmarket on his penultimate start – could head to Gosforth Park for a floodlit showdown on Tapeta as British racing stages a Group 1 on the all-weather for the first time.

The Vertem Futurity is the highlight of a bumper nine-race card at Newcastle, and it has been positioned in the middle of the fixture as the fifth race, due off at 6pm.

Mogul: could still run in the Vertem Futurity, despite it being moved to NewcastleCredit: Patrick McCann

A week ago O'Brien dominated the five-day entries with 11 of the 12 possibles. Although the majority of potential runners again hail from his yard, the split this time around was more even, with O'Brien accounting for nine of the 17 entries.

Running plans for the Ballydoyle contingent are yet to be set in stone, and whoever does line up will be breaking new ground for the trainer, who is yet to have a runner on Newcastle's all-weather track.

O'Brien said on Monday: "At the moment, everything we have in there are possibles. It’s going to be a totally different experience with the race now being run at Newcastle, but it’ll be the same for everyone.

"We could run plenty, including Innisfree and Mogul. Wichita is in there as well, but we’ll make a decision about his participation closer to the time."

Beresford Stakes winner Innisfree could also represent Aidan O'BrienCredit: Patrick McCann

Despite the wider spread of entries, bookmaker appetite for the race was limited. Coral took the unusual stance of not pricing the race up last Monday and abstained once again.

Coral head of PR David Stevens said: "With Ballydoyle runners once again dominating the Vertem Futurity entries, albeit not to the extent of last week, and with Wichita added to the mix, we’ve once again taken the decision to hold off pricing this up until running plans become clearer, which of course may not happen until Wednesday’s final declaration stage.

"However, we absolutely welcome the decision to reschedule the race, and hopefully Arc and Vertem will be rewarded with a top-class and competitive contest on Friday night."

Paddy Power did construct a market, inserting Mogul as the 5-6 favourite with Kameko next best at 7-2. The firm offer 8-1 on Wichita.

O'Brien may not be the only Irish trainer coming to Newcastle, as the Emmet Mullins-trained King Of The Throne was one of two supplementary entries received, while Jim Bolger has left in Geometrical.

Ralph Beckett: could run the exciting KinrossCredit: Edward Whitaker

The other supplementary entry was Kinross, with trainer Ralph Beckett indicating the race would come into consideration, along with the Horris Hill which was the colt's original target last weekend. The Group 3 has also been rescheduled for Newmarket on Saturday following Newbury's cancellation at the weekend.

John Gosden has two possible runners with Cherokee Trail and Verboten, while Cepheus (Brian Meehan) and Tammani (William Haggas) complete the entries.

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