Last season's Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap winner Impending continued his love affair with Brisbane when he added Saturday's $700,000 Group 1 Kingsford-Smith Cup (1350m) at Doomben.
A last start second to English in the Group 1 Doomben 10,000, Impending looked in danger of being boxed in on the home turn, however, Damian Browne found a narrow seam between runners to score a last stride win over the thoroughly game Le Romain with Champagne Cuddles a length and a quarter back in third.
Due to be retired to Darley's Northwood Park, Victoria at the end of his present campaign, the 4yo son of Lonhro advances his record to 5 wins, 2 seconds and 6 thirds from 17 starts with earnings of $2,403,989.
Winning trainer James Cummings said Impending will most likely be given his chance to defend his Stradbroke crown in two weeks before the curtain comes down on his career.
"I was very confident during the week because he had worked so well on Tuesday," Cummings told AAP.
"This was a perfect target race for him after winning the Victory Stakes here first up and then finishing second in the Doomben 10,000.
"Today suited him because it was weight-for-age but we will definitely look at the Stradbroke.
"He is going to stud in the spring and it would be the ideal way for him to go out."
A half-brother to the Group III Cameron Handicap winner Forget (Exceed And Excel), Impending is the fifth foal of the outstanding mare Mnemosyne who captured the Group 1 1000 Guineas at Caulfield defeating Rewaaya and Serenade Rose and the Group 1 Queen Of The Turf Stakes at Rosehill.
Bred by a partnership that included former champion jockey Ron Quinton, Mnemosyne was a $400,000 Easter Yearling purchase by Woodlands Stud.
Inherited by Darley after the purchase of Woodlands, Mnemosyne has a 3yo sister to Impending named Epidemic who is a winner at Randwick and Rosehill and placed in the Listed Gosford Guineas back in February.
It has been nothing but heartbreak for Godolphin since as A daughter of Encosta de Lago, Mnemosyne has had a tragic recent past. She slipped to Dawn Approach (IRE) in 2014 and to Sepoy in 2015 before missing to Lonhro in 2016.
She was covered by Lonhro's Group 1 Golden Rose Stakes winning son Exosphere last spring.
