Sent off at 11-1 in this return, the Koji Maeda colourbearer was not quickly into stride and raced near the tail of the field behind splits of :24 flat and :46.70. Saving all the ground on the rail, he improved incrementally until the quarter-mile pole, and came under a drive from Kosei Miura. Still third inside the final furlong, he clawed his way to the front and stood firm against the rallying Danon The Tiger (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) to earn a first group rosette. It was close for third, with Hearts Concerto (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) a half-length behind Danon The Tiger, and a neck to the good of fourth-place finisher Dura Erede (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}), the only horse to stick around at the death, after sitting on or near the pace for much of the contest.

Pedigree Notes

One of 13 stakes winners and six group winners for his sire, Gastrique is the second Hai Nisai scorer after Danon The Kid (Jpn). Incidentally, Danon The Kid is the lone Group 1 scorer so far for Just A Way, having triumphed in the G1 Hopeful S. His G2 Hochi Hai Fillies' Revue victress Epos (Jpn) is out of a Smart Strike mare, who is the sire of Curlin.

The third foal and second winner from three runners, Gastrique has a yearling half-brother by Al Ain (Jpn) and a weanling half-sister by Mind Your Biscuits. His dam, the Curlin mare A Shin Epona, won three times at 1800 metres–once on turf at three, and twice on dirt as a 4-year-old. Her dam was the three-time Grade III heroine Wild Gams (Forest Wildcat), who has also produced dual graded winner Cazadero (Street Sense), the stakes-winning Mt. Brave (Malibu Moon), and the GIII Matt Winn S. third Almost Famous (Unbridled's Song).

Saturday, Tokyo, Japan
TOKYO SPORTS HAI NISAI S.-G2, ¥72,550,000, Tokyo, 11-19, 2yo, 1800mT, 1:45.80, fm.
1–GASTRIQUE (JPN), 121, c, 2, by Just a Way (Jpn)
                1st Dam: A Shin Epona, by Curlin
                2nd Dam: Wild Gams, by Forest Wildcat
                3rd Dam: Diamonds and Legs, by Quiet American
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN. 1ST GROUP WIN. O-Koji Maeda;
B-Eishin Farm (Jpn); T-Hiroyuki Uehara; J-Kosei Miura.
¥38,385,000. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0. Click for the
   free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Werk Nick
   Rating: D+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Danon the Tiger (Jpn), 121, c, 2, Heart's Cry (Jpn)–She's a
Tiger, by Tale of the Cat. 1ST BLACK TYPE. 1ST GROUP BLACK
   TYPE. (¥270,000,000 Wlg '20 JRHAJUL). O-Danox Inc.;
B-Northern Farm (Jpn); ¥15,110,000.
3–Hearts Concerto (Jpn), 121, c, 2, Heart's Cry (Jpn)–Nasuno
Sibelius, by Unbridled's Song. 1ST BLACK TYPE. 1ST GROUP
   BLACK TYPE. O-Green Farm; B-Hashimoto Farm (Jpn);
¥9,555,000.
Margins: NK, HF, NK. Odds: 11.40, 4.10, 0.80.
Also Ran: Dura Erede (Jpn), Fate (Jpn), Silver Spade (Jpn), Josho Hope (Jpn), Schillthorn (Jpn), Rock Creek (Jpn), Tenkano Gijin (Jpn), Taisei Courageux (Jpn). Click for the JRA chart & video.

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