Double-figure odds for a Waterhouse and Bott-trained gelding likely to get an uncontested lead looks an enticing bet at Newcastle on Saturday.
Punters have to overlook a last start beaten margin of close to 18-lengths for the Tulloch Lodge galloper but there was enough evidence to suggest we put a line through the run with a Brette Partelle-trained three-three-year-old returning to racing after two impressive trials and another maiden winner with the figures to successfully progress to a class one rounding out our best bets for the eight-race card at Newcastle.
ECHO KING (Race 1 No 1)
Nothing went right for the Waterhouse and Bott-trained Echo King when he returned to racing at Newcastle on September 16.
Expectations were not high for Echo King’s return to racing with the market fluctuations ($15 to $19) suggesting the gelding would benefit from the run.
Launching from barrier 12 didn’t help as Echo King found himself three-wide without cover racing close to the speed.
A check just after straightening put paid to whatever chance Echo King may have had.
It’s impossible to quantify the affect of the check on where Echo King may have finished but one thing we can be certain of, it greatly exaggerated the beaten margin.
Echo King will take plenty of benefit from the first-up run in terms of fitness and he won’t have much difficulty finding the front on Saturday.
A six-year-old son of High Chaparral with just two career starts would suggest the horse has been showing connections something and we might see why on Saturday.
At $10 Echo King is worth the punt.
PERFECT STYLE (Race 3 No 2)
Two trial wins by a combined margin in excess of 13-lengths suggest the Brett Partelle-trained Perfect Style is ready to go first-up in the Allweld Services 3YO Maiden Plate (900m).
Perfect Style has done plenty wrong in his two starts to date but he showed he had ability when runner-up at Cessnock in his only run last preparation getting going again after hanging badly in the straight.
The three-year-old son of Wicked Style looked to do everything right in his latest trial on the Newcastle Beaumont circuit leading all the way and running time.
The scenario is simple on Saturday, if Perfect Style brings the trial form to race day he will be winning.
SURJIN (Race 4 No 3)
Readers of this column know I have no concerns backing horses stepping up from a maiden win if the performance was good enough and that’s the case with the Paul Perry-trained Surjin who chases back to back wins in the Kentan Machinery Class 1 Handicap (1600m).
After finishing in the placings on debut at Beaumont, Surjin relished a solid tempo to come from the back of the field to win a Newcastle maiden last start running about four-lengths quicker than the other maiden on the day over the same journey and faster than the benchmark 70 winner.
With plenty of scope for improvement having his third career start Surjin looks more than capable of handling the step up in grade.
