Favourite takes Omnipotent Juvenile

The feature race at Newmarket on Saturday was the fifteenth race on the card, the Omnipotent Juvenile, a Grade Three race for two-year-olds over seven and a half furlongs on turf with a purse of $150,000, for which a small field of five turned out.

The favourite was Spartiate (ENG), who is trained by daninja in the wicked stable and was ridden here by the course’s leading jockey, A. Craig. First out of the gate was the outsider. Limehigh (KY), followed closely by Trippa (VEN). Racing in third place was Takapaper (PA), with the favourite further behind on the rail and Agareni Empire (KY) in rear. At the halfway stage, Takapaper (PA) began a forward move and looked to be in a challenging position as they came down the home straight, but he could not match the pace of Spartiate (ENG), who, coming from six and a quarter lengths back, took over from the long-time leader Limehigh (KY) and won by two lengths. Takapaper (PA) ran on for second under J. Bradley for mano’s oxymoron stable, but could make no impression on the winner. Limehigh (KY), ridden by T. Cooper for bigeasy’s jdawg11 stable, finished third, with graywolf21’s Trippa (VEN) fourth and Agareni Empire (KY), running for jumpmoose’s orignal stable, last of the five runners.

This brought the winner’s earnings to $123,875 and a ranking of eleventh among the juvenile turf sprinters. Recording an improving speed figure of 78, he finished the race in one minute thirty-one and four fifths.