ATTRACTION by name and attraction by nature, Mark Johnston's flying filly generates huge interest whenever she appears and tomorrow will be no exception as she lines up for the 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket.

Five times the dark bay daughter of Efisio has stepped on to the racetrack and five times she has annihilated her rivals with the sort of blistering pace confined only to the crme-de-la-crme of the thoroughbred world.

The likes of Royal Ascot and Newmarket's prestigious July meeting held no fears for Attraction last year as she swept aside previously regarded top-class opposition with imperious ease, prompting her all-conquering trainer to declare: "I've no doubt she's the fastest filly I have ever trained."

Such bold statements are occasionally made in the heat of the moment, but the cool-headed Johnston is neither rash nor given to over-hyping his horses, so I think it's safe to say he believes Attraction is capable of scaling even further heights.

A meticulous stickler for detail, Johnston has prepared Attraction with military precision for the fillies' one-mile Classic, worth over £300,000 in prize-money.

First he had to ensure the cracked hind pedal bone she suffered shortly after winning the Group 2 Cherry Hinton Stakes at Newmarket last July healed properly.

"There were also changes going on in the bone structures of her knees which were a big worry, but the pedal bone fracture is now 100 per cent, plus her knees have settled down dramatically," said Johnston after Attraction completed her final prep gallop at Ripon racecourse last Saturday.

"Because of her injury Attraction hadn't seen a racecourse since last July, so the idea of going to Ripon was to remind her what it was all about. We weren't sure how she was going to react to the crowd, although she was just perfect," he added.

As far as the gallop was concerned, Attraction and stable-companion Caracara were originally intent on covering only the six furlongs up the home straight.

Attraction, however, had other ideas, because when her regular big-race jockey Kevin Darley tried to put on the brakes after breezing past Caracara, she shot off and covered a further four furlongs.

"When Attraction takes a hold she takes a lot of stopping," revealed Johnston, who, like all of his Kingsley House team, have been on tenterhooks over the past few days hoping all remains well with the Duke of Roxburge-owned star.

Stable riders Alan Mercer and Steve Rabjohn have been entrusted with the job of cantering Attraction up the Middleham Low Moor polytrack surface all week.

Some say Attraction is an out-and-out sprinter and will not have the necessary stamina to see out the one-mile Guineas' trip.

Johnston rebuffs that, saying: "She's bred and built to stay and we have said many times that if this filly hadn't come to hand so early last season we would have never started her off over five furlongs."

Attraction is bidding to end a victory-drought of northern-trained fillies in the 1,000 Guineas which stretches back 27 years to the Eddie Hide ridden, Mrs McArdy, successful in 1977 for Sheriff Hutton handler, Mick Easterby.

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