Chris Waller has declared Coastwatch a Doncaster Mile contender next autumn but jockey James Mcdonald expects the Ming Dynasty winner to make his presence felt on the big stage much sooner.
The three-year-old showed his first-up second to Tiger Of Malay was no fluke with a resounding victory in Saturday’s Group 3 Ming Dynasty Quality (1400m) at Kembla Grange and McDonald believes it is the tip of the iceberg.
“I reckon we’ll see the best of him when he gets to a mile, 2000 and even this time next year he’ll be a pretty good horse,” McDonald said.
“He’ll be on an upward spiral from here on in because he’s got the constitution, he’s got a really good mind and a turn of foot. He’ll be in all the big races.”
Waller was equally excited about the three-year-old’s future, although he took a longer-term view.
He believes Coastwatch has the potential to deliver him a seventh Doncaster Mile next year.
“Honestly, I think he’s a Randwick Guineas, even Doncaster horse in the autumn,” Waller said.
“Just a little bit of time has helped him. He showed some ability at two, but he didn’t know what it was all about.
“Now that he’s matured into a three-year-old you can see the difference. Obviously, he’s still got a long way to go but he’s got the scope to improve.”
McDonald settled Coastwatch ($3.80 fav) a touch better than midfield, angling off the fence in the straight and chasing down Military Expert who had kicked clear.
He scored by three-quarters of a length over Military Expert ($5.50), who fought gamely after being challenged for the early lead, with Subterranean ($6) an even third another 2-1/4 lengths away.
