Brisbane on the agenda for Imperial Force
Chris Waller is now eyeing a Brisbane raid with Imperial Force (Snitzel) after the colt showed his class when breaking his maiden on his second attempt in a 1250-metre maiden at Canterbury on Wednesday, leading home a trifecta for Arrowfield Stud’s headline sire, Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice).
Having finished second on his first start at Randwick-Kensington on March 27, the colt put his experience to good use, scoring an impressive 3.8 length victory over Monte Veebee, while Dark Arts came home a further 0.7 lengths adrift in third.
Imperial Force was bought by owners Coolmore from the Lime Country Thoroughbreds draft for $1.6 million at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale, making him the most expensive colt bought at the auction last year and third overall.
Out of the Listed-winning mare Ultimate Fever (Gold Fever), Imperial Force is a brother to Group 3 scorer Sprightly Lass and stakes winner Le Cordon Bleu.
“My push would be towards Queensland for a big race or two up there,” Waller said.
“He’s a good colt and it has worked well for us in the past. It helps mature horses and give them confidence and they come back a bit race smart.
“If you just turn them out now after two runs and you expect them to run in the big races when they come back, they still haven’t learned enough.”
Waller confirmed the BRC Sires’ Produce Stakes (Gr 2, 1400m) and JJ Atkins (Gr 1, 1600m) are among the options being considered in Brisbane.
The Sydney trainer has enjoyed great success in the Queensland features, particularly the JJ Atkins which he has won with The Autumn Sun (Redoute’s Choice) (2018), Press Statement (Hinchinbrook) (2015) and Pressday (Domesday) (2010).