There's never been any doubt that Futura (SAF) is a serious racehorse and trainer Brett Crawford's (pictured) charge notched up the second Gr 1 prize of his relatively short career when pouncing at the right time in the country's premier mile race, the L'Ormarins Queens Plate at Kenilworth on Saturday. Louis The King (SAF) shaped promisingly in second while veteran Gold Onyx (NZ) produced a sensational effort to snatch third from Jet Explorer (SAF).

As expected, none of the riders was keen to go to the front. Ashton Park eventually found himself in the lead and it is a measure of the slow early pace that Tellina, who usually runs at them from behind, was pushed into second, ahead of 3-year-old Kingvoldt. Hot favourite Legislate raced on the fence, disputing fourth place with Louis The King. Jet Explorer and Gold Onyx were next best as Futura and Paterfamilias sat at the rear.

The field headed towards the outside upon entering the straight with Ashton Park clinging to his lead and Tellina trying to stay in touch. Kingvoldt came under pressure while Futura started to kick to the inside of the pack. Louis The King was looking for a gap while Legislate, some clearly amiss with him, failed to respond as the race began in earnest.

Ashton Park still had his nose in front as the final furlong loomed but Futura had kicked into top gear up the inside and forged into the lead. Louis The King once again took a while to find his stride but once he got going, he produced a late rattle. Futura was well on his way, however, and had nearly a length to spare at the line.

Much of the post-race reaction was understandably focused on Legislate's below-par performance but the sight of Futura winning an elite Gr 1 event of this nature is hardly a shock. The son of Dynasty showed star potential as a 3-year-old, his Gr 1 efforts including a cracking third in the Vodacom Durban July and a comfortable win in the Gr 1 Champions Cup. Victory here can be seen as a natural progression from those performances. If anything, the trip here was on the sharp side for him, and he now looks the one to beat for the J & B Met in three weeks time, as the 2000m journey should be even more to his liking.

Louis The King once again took a while to get going and had to wait for a gap behind pacemaker Ashton Park. A slow-run mile is definitely not his game and he turned in a top class effort in the circumstances. The Met is his main mission this summer and this run would have offered plenty of encouragement for his connections, although his chances there will one again depend on whether he can get a decent pace.

Gold Onyx produced arguably the performance of the race, from the point of view that many would expect the 7-year-old to be well past it, especially at this level. This was a remarkable performance for a horse who had gone very close to winning the Gold Cup over two miles less than six months ago.

Jet Explorer, meanwhile, continues to impress with his comeback since suffering that horrible, jaw-breaking fall last season. It's a source of  pleasure and gratitude just to see the 6-year-old alive and well, and the fact that he is still competitive in this league is, in itself, one of the most inspiring stories of the season.

At the time of writing, it was not clear what went amiss with Legislate. One can safely put a line through this run and he will hopefully bounce back from this setback.

4 b c Dynasty - Scribblin' The Cat by Badger's Drift
Owners: Messrs John T Freeman, I W Longmore & W J C Mitchell
Bred by Guy Murdoch
Winning trainer: Brett Crawford