Undrafted being pointed toward Newmarket's July Cup

An extremely strong overseas contingent from six different

countries on four continents is part of a 48-horse entry for the Group 1,

£510,000 July Cup -- a leg of both the British Champions Series and

the Global Sprint Challenge -- which will be run over six furlongs of Newmarket's July Course on July 12.

The 21 foreign contenders include Undrafted, who is owned by the

star NFL player Wes Welker and conditioned by the three-time Royal

Ascot-winning trainer Wesley Ward.

"Undrafted ran the best race of his life at Churchill Downs last Friday

(when he

finished second in the Twin Spires Turf Sprint despite a troubled trip),"

Ward said.

"As long as he shows enough to warrant a trip across the Atlantic in his next

race, at Belmont Park in a month's time, then the plan is to go to Newmarket.

"Wes Welker is an extremely lucky owner who loves to go to the races and let his

hair down. He has already been to Ascot and had a great time there," the

horseman added.

Welker is in the midst of a stellar career in the NFL. He has

played in the Super Bowl three times and is currently half-way through a $12

million, two-year contract with the Denver Broncos.

Undrafted is the only horse that he owns outright and is so named because,

partly as a result of his lack of height (he is 5' 9'' tall), Welker was

initially left undrafted by an NFL franchise despite his fantastic record in

college football.

"The likelihood is that Undrafted will go to Newmarket depending on his

performance at Belmont next month," said Gatewood Bell, Welker's racing manager.

"He is unusual for an American sprinter in that he does not need the lead, he

comes with a turn of foot from off the pace, hence he can be compromised by the

turns of U.S. courses.

"If the Darley July Cup is not Britain's premier sprint it is certainly in the

top two or three and it would be a fun thing to try. For half a million pounds

it should be well worth the trip."

There are 14 Irish contenders among the other foreign entries, plus three

from France and one each from Spain (Two Thousand Guineas sixth Noozhoh Canarias),

Australia (Zoustar) and South

Africa (Mike de Kock's three-time Group 1 winner Shea Shea).

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