G1 NHK Mile Cup | Horse Racing Free Tips

Champagne Color Sparkles in Tokyo’s NHK CUP

Over a course with conditions that could only be described as a soggy bog, Yoichi Aoyama's homebred Champagne Color (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}) earned his first Group 1 win and third win in five career starts with his head victory here. After a stumble out of the gate, the chestnut colt had no choice but to hang back in the early going and rate with the early trailers while From Dusk (Bolt d'Oro) set all the pace. The 22-1 outsider made a bold move toward the front around the bend while wide, slipped between rivals at the top of the lane and reached contention with about 200 metres left to run. In deep stretch, the winner pulled ahead and remained all out to hold off the late challenge from the filly Umbrail (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) to pick up the win.

“The plan was to keep him in about fifth to sixth from the pace, but the competition to position him forwardly was intense and the going was soggy so I didn't force him to move up front,” jockey Hiroyuki Uchida said. “He came out of the last turn smoothly and responded incredibly well. While waiting for the right moment and watching out for the other runners, I just drove him to the line hoping to reach it first. It's his third win here at Tokyo–he enjoys the wide and spacious course–and we're looking forward to seeing him develop with every race he runs this season.”

Pedigree Notes:
Champagne Color is the fifth Group 1 winner by the late stallion Duramente (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) and out of the unraced Memorial Life (GB) (Reckless Abandon), a half-sister to G2 Queen Mary S. winner Ceiling Kitty (GB) (Red Clubs {Ire}), herself the dam of Chesham S. winner Arthur Kitt (GB) (Camelot {GB}); and Listed winner Eartha Kitt (GB) (Pivotal {GB}), who is the dam of last year's G2 Gimcrack S. winner Noble Style (GB) (Kingman {GB}).

Sunday, Tokyo, Japan
NHK MILE CUP-G1,¥253,400,000, Tokyo, 5-7, 3yo/c&f, 1600mT, 1:33.80, gd.
1–CHAMPAGNE COLOR (JPN), 126, c, 3, by Duramente (Jpn)
1st Dam: Memorial Life (GB), by Reckless Abandon (GB)
2nd Dam: Baldovina (GB), by In Tale of the Cat
3rd Dam: Baldwina (Fr), by Pistolet Bleu (Ire)
FIRST GROUP 1 WIN. O-Yoichi Aoyama; B-Shadai Farm (Jpn);
T-Tsuyoshi Tanaka; J-Hiroyuki Uchida; ¥133,780,000. Lifetime:
5-3-0-1, ¥165,487,000. Werk Nick Rating: C+. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free
Equineline.com pedigree.
2–Umbrail (Jpn), 121, f, 3, by Lord Kanaloa (Jpn)–L'Archetto
(Jpn), by Falbrav (Ire). O-Sunday Racing; B-Northern Farm (Jpn);
¥53,080,000.
3–Obamburumai (Jpn), 126, c, 3, Discreet Cat–Pink Gerbera
(Jpn), by Deep Impact (Jpn). O-Koji Oka; B-Sunday Hills (Jpn);
¥33,540,000.
Margins: HD, 1 1/4, 1 1/4. Odds : 21.20, 11.90, 5.10
Also ran: Danon Touchdown (Jpn), Carro Veloce(Jpn), Moryana (Jpn), Mississippi Tesoro (Jpn), Navona (Jpn), Eeyan (Jpn), Tamamo Black Tie (Jpn), Sing That Song (Jpn), Dolce More (Jpn), Session (Jpn), Yurisha (Jpn), Shomon (Jpn), All Parfait(Jpn), From Dusk. Scratch: Cruzeiro do Sul (Jpn).
Click for the JRA chart and Video.

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Milers’ Delight In Tokyo

The G1 NHK Mile Cup has attracted a field of 18 3-year-old milers, none better credentialed than morning line favourite Dolce More (Jpn).

Racing for Three H Racing Company, the Rulership (Jpn) colt was undefeated at two, where he parlayed his G3 Saudi Arabia Royal Cup victory into a sparkling win in the G1 Asahi Hai Futurity S. at Hanshin in December. Named the Japanese Champion 2-Year-Old Colt, he is on a retrieval mission, as he lost his unbeaten tag to Eeyan (Jpn) (Silver State {Jpn}) in the G2 New Zealand Trophy going out too quickly first up at Nakayama in April.

“He was leading out in the New Zealand Trophy last time, but the pace was a bit too quick in the backstraight and it became difficult for him to maintain his lead at the end, so he eventually had to settle for seventh place. Since that race, things have gone smoothly with him, and he's been working well uphill with stablemate Sodashi (Jpn) (Kurofune),” said trainer Naosuke Sugai.

That rival has now won three in a row since cutting back to 1600 metres and will have Keita Tosaki at the controls from gate six. “He drew inside in the New Zealand Trophy, but he started well and wanted to get on with things and had plenty of room turning for home,” said trainer Daishi Ito of Eeyan. “He was driven out well in the closing stages to go on and win. Even though he hasn't won at Tokyo, he ran well enough there on his debut, and I don't see a problem with the course.”

A group winner at two and three, Obamburumai (Jpn) (Discreet Cat) enters this test coming off a victory in the 1600-metre G3 Arlington Cup at Hanshin. Trainer Keiji Yoshimura said, “He got into the race well last time, and although I wasn't sure about how he might finish off, he came with a good late run and caught the others just before the line. Thinking about Tokyo with him, this kind of run seems to suit him.”

Adding some intrigue is Keio Hai Nisai S. runner-up From Dusk (Bolt D'Oro), who was third in the Listed Crocus S. in January. The Susumu Fujita runner breaks from stall one. He will be making his first start since a trip overseas to run ninth in the G3 Saudi Derby in Riyadh in February.

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Danon Scorpion Stings in NHK Mile Cup

Danon Scorpion (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn) recorded a career-high win when taking the G1 NHK Mile Cup at Tokyo Sunday. Unhurried in the early going exiting after exiting the widest stall, the colt settled in mid-division as the leaders slugged it out up front. Inching closer approaching the home turn, he reeled in late-leader and favorite Serifos (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn} in the stretch, drew even at the 100-meter marker and held off the late-closing Matenro Orion (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}) by a neck with Kawakita Reverie (Jpn) (Drefong) a similar margin back in third. Serifos was fourth.

“It was a great feeling to have won in front of a big crowd like this. It was a close victory and I knew that the horses on the outside route were all coming up with a lot of force, so although I felt we had won crossing the wire, I had to be sure by watching the replay,” said winning jockey Yuga Kawada. “Danon Scorpion was in perhaps his best condition coming into this race so I had a lot of confidence [despite a wide draw]. He was in good rhythm and balance so I had no worries.”

With a pair of wins at two, including the Listed Hagi S., he concluded the 2021 season with a third in the G1 Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes (1,600m). He was seventh in his 3-year-old debut in the G3 Kyodo News Hai in February but bounced back to win the Apr. 16 G3 Arlington Cup.

Pedigree Note:

Danon Scorpion is out of Canadian Horse of the Year Lexie Lou, winner of the 2014 Queen's Plate, the first jewel in Canada's Triple Crown. A $5,577 yearling purchase at the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society, Lexie Lou also earned Champion 3-year-old Filly honors in 2014, the same season she annexed the Woodbine Oaks. Lexie Lou retired with 10 wins from 24 starts and earnings of more than $1.9 million. Nine of her wins came in stakes races, including the GII Dance Smartly S., GII Nassau S., and GIII Autumn Miss S. She also ran second to Kentucky Derby winner California Chrome in the 2014 GI Hollywood Derby. Offered at the Keeneland November sale in 2016, she realized a $1-million final bid from K I Farm.

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International Threads in NHK Mile Cup Tapestry

Narrowly leading the market for the G1 NHK Mile Cup at Tokyo on Sunday is 4-1 shot Serifos (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}). A winner of the G3 Niigata Nisai S. and G2 Daily Hai Nisai S. at two, the relative of GI Pacific Classic hero Go Between (Point Given) lost his unbeaten tag when second in the G1 Asahi Hai Futurity S. to Do Deuce (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) last December and makes his 3-year-old bow in this competitive contest from stall four.

“He ran solo in his last piece of work on the woodchip course over five furlongs, but he went quickly,” said trainer Mitsumasa Nakauchida of the G1 Racing Company runner. “He looks good, and I can see the difference from when he was a 2-year-old. I think the distance of the race will be fine for him, and racing left-handed at Tokyo shouldn't be a problem either.”

Third in that feature was Danox Company Ltd.'s Danon Scorpion (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}). Successful in the G3 Arlington Cup at Hanshin in April, the colt is a son of Canadian Horse of the Year and three-time Classic victress Lexie Lou (Sligo Bay {Ire}), a $1-million purchase by K I Farm out of the 2016 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.

Conditioner Yakayuki Yasuda said, “He is in good condition, and he's like Lord Kanaloa in the way that he races in a relaxed way. He is looking well in his coat, and hopefully things will go smoothly now right up to the race. A mile is probably his best distance, so I think he can run well.”

Lending strong American flavour to Sunday's event is American-bred transplant Jean Gros (More Than Ready), who hit a career high with an Apr. 9 defeat of Group 3 winner Matenro Orion (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}) in the G2 New Zealand Trophy S. over this trip at Nakayama. A full-brother to dual graded winner Tom's Ready (More Than Ready) who was also third in the GI Forego S., the Susumu Fujita silksbearer was a $130,000 Keeneland September RNA turned $265,000 OBSMAR 2-year-old acquisition by Hideyuki Mori after breezing a furlong in :10 flat. Mori and Take combined to win the 1997 edition of this race with Seeking the Pearl (Seeking the Gold), who would also strike in the G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest one year later. Jean Gros and his veteran reinsman exit lucky gate 13.

Mori said, “He is developing well, and although quite a small horse, he is getting bigger gradually. If another horse doesn't want to make the running, I think he's capable of going forward and making his own pace.”

One of five members of the fairer sex signed on, Sonnet Phrase (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}) is extremely light on starts, but after breaking her maiden at Niigata in August, she did finish second to Serifos in the Daily Hai Nisai S. in November. The Carrot Farm runner would be the first filly or mare to take this race since Aerolithe (Jpn) (Kurofune) in 2017 and she leaves from stall two.

Said trainer Takahisa Tezuka, “The Tokyo mile should suit her, and there's no reason why she can't do well with the ability she has. The pace should be strong this time, and it'll be a full field of eighteen horses, but unless we try, we won't know. I would like her to show her potential here.”

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