Pukekohe trainer Richard Yuill is now less embarrassed about a question he asked owner Barry Neville-White a couple of weeks ago.
Yuill admitted at the time he was a bit cheeky asking permission to nominate Needuask for the country's premier sprint, the $200,000 Waiwera Infinity Railway at Ellerslieon January 1.
That looked a lot less ambitious when Needuask proved he had a prophetic name as he dashed away with last night's $100,000 Original Aussie Butcher Concorde at Avondale.
This was a remarkable rise by a horse with just four wins behind him - when Sam Spratt asked Needuask for a sprint at the top of the home straight the response was so electric he had two and a half lengths on the opposition in a flash.
There were no other serious contenders for the major prize after that.
The victory made up for a disappointment earlier in the day when the Neville-White-owned Nuke Time finished only third in the juvenile race as the hot favourite.
"Oh, what a thrill," said the former chairman of the Auckland Racing Club.
"I've always had staying types - this is the first top sprinting type I can remember owning."
And Yuill couldn't stop smiling.
"It looks like a cheap Railway nomination now I'd say."
Imananabaa flashed home from the tail of the field for second in a finish that was set up when Lil' Monster pressured the leader Jazzella from the 1000m and forced a suicidal pace. Something had to be running on.
Kay's Awake, back at the rear with Imananabaa, did well to finish sixth, running on strongly under her 58kg.
The other 58kg runner, Tenjuberrymud, stuck on grimly to finish third ahead of Brianna and Castles Burning.
Not surprisingly, Jazzella could not keep going and probably the inside rail was not the place to be in the last race of the day after steady, if not heavy, rain fell for several hours.
* Pasta Post, probably New Zealand's fastest emerging new star, took one step closer to the City Of Auckland Cup by easily winning his fifth race from just six starts.
