Arena Racing Company (“ARC”), Doncaster Racecourse and Vertem Stockbrokers are delighted to announce a new chapter for sponsorship at the racecourse, with the Vertem Futurity Trophy, the final Group 1 of the British flat season.
The Newcastle based stockbroker, founded by racehorse owner John Dance, will become the title sponsor of the race, in a five-year deal.
The traditional test of the premier two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies, the race is run over a mile at the end of October and offers the racing world a strong indication towards the superstar three-year-olds for the next season, in the Classic generation.
Five winners of The Vertem Futurity Trophy have gone on to win the following year’s Derby, the most recent of which was Camelot, trained by Aidan O’Brien. The horse also won the 2,000 Guineas and was narrowly denied a historic Triple Crown back at Doncaster in the 2012 St Leger.
In 2017, Coolmore’s subsequent 2,000 Guineas winner Saxon Warrior was triumphant over Qatar Racing’s Roaring Lion who went on to win the Group 1 Coral Eclipse at Sandown Park and York’s Juddmonte International in 2018.
John Dance, founder of Vertem commented, “Vertem Stockbrokers is all about building something for the future, in our business we aim to provide growth and protection to clients' assets, and in terms of this sponsorship deal not only are we supporting the future stars of the sport, but we are equally delighted to be helping Doncaster develop the future heritage of this historic race by reinstating ‘Futurity’ in its title. We believe this sponsorship, just like our investment aims, will deliver a high quality, long-term relationship with Doncaster and we look forward to a very exciting future working with them”.
ARC Director of Partnerships, David Leyden Dunbar said, “We are delighted to welcome Vertem to Doncaster for the Futurity Trophy, which is one of the highlights of the British flat racing season. John Dance and his team have had a tremendous year with the success of their bloodstock and racing operations, and we’re delighted that they will be matching that ambition with such prestigious race sponsorship.
“Our thanks must go, of course, to the Racing Post, who have been tremendous supporters of the race for nearly thirty years. Their impact in helping to build the race into the position it is in today has been massive, for which we are hugely grateful.”
Alan Byrne, Chief Executive of the Racing Post said, “We are very happy to see John Dance and Vertem take over what has been a great sponsorship for us for 30 years. We wish John and his team every success with the race which has long been a proving ground for the very best horses and we hope that will continue to be the case under the Vertem banner”.
