Tag: Horse Racing

Equinox Must Defy Outside Barrier in Satsuki Sho

Highly impressive in winning a pair of juvenile starts last season, Equinox (Jpn) (Kitasan Black {Jpn}) makes Sunday's G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) his 3-year-old debut, but must overcome the widest draw in the field of 18 if he is to stretch his unbeaten mark to three.

Receiving the always important endorsement of Christophe Lemaire for his career debut in an 1800-metre newcomers' event at Niigata at the end of August, the Silk Racing colorbearer settled handy to the pace and stormed clear to graduate by six powerful lengths. He faced the starter just once more, getting further back in the run before closing his final three furlongs in a smart :32.9 to take out the G2 Tokyo Sports Hai Nisai S. Nov. 20, becoming the second group winner of the year for his Group 3-winning dam Chateau Blanche (Jpn) (King Halo {Jpn}). Equinox's half-sister Weiss Meteor (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) won the G2 Radio Nikkei Sho last July.

“I have confidence in him, and with his two wins from two starts, there seems to be plenty more to come from him,” said Lemaire. “I am not worried about it being the first time at the track, or the fact that he hasn't run in a while. I think he can run from any position in a race, and he showed a really good turn of foot at Tokyo last time. I haven't won a big race in Japan this year, but my confidence is up after riding overseas, and I'd like to be successful here with this good horse.”

 

 

 

Do Deuce (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) ran the table in three starts last term, winning the Listed Ivy S. ahead of a championship-clinching success in the G1 Asahi Hai Futurity S. going a mile in December. The bay has the benefit of a tightener, and a bit of troubled one at that, as he was shuffled back at a key stage in the G2 Deep Impact Kinen over track and distance Mar. 6 and couldn't quite reel in Ask Victor More (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), who sat a soft trip just off the speed.

Danon Beluga (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) is also a veteran of just two runs to date, a debut success going 10 furlongs at Tokyo Nov. 21 and a comebacking defeat of favoured Geoglyph (Jpn) (Drefong) in the G2 Kyodo News Hai at headquarters Feb. 13. While the former had a clear run down the centre of the track on that occasion, Geoglyph brushed with a rival and took a long time to fully let down before finishing with good energy.

Killer Graces (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) stamped himself a Classics contender in the G1 Hopeful S. at the end of the season, besting a fractionally unlucky Justin Palace (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) by 1 1/2 lengths.

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Zozos Leads Derby, Oaks Workers at Churchill

'TDN Rising Star' Zozos (Munnings), most recently runner-up to Epicenter (Not This Time) in the GII Louisiana Derby Mar. 26, continued his preparations for the May 7 GI Kentucky Derby with a five-furlongs work that was timed in 1:00.20 Friday morning at Churchill Downs.

Breezing in the company of his GI Longines Kentucky Oaks-bound stablemate Turnerloose (Nyquist), the Barry and Joni Butzow homebred was out at 5:30 a.m. and broke off about a length behind the GII Rachel Alexandra S. heroine before galloping along through fractions of :24 flat and :48.40. The move began at the half-mile pole and concluded with Zozos on even terms with Turnerloose at the seven-eighths marker. Zozos galloped out three-quarters of a mile in 1:13.60.

“He's a really smart horse,” said jockey Florent Geroux, who will ride Zozos's GI Arkansas Derby-winning stablemate Cyberknife (Gun Runner) in the Derby. “He's starting to come into his own and it was a really nice work this morning. I settled back of [Turnerloose] and he finished up nicely with her. Both horses worked well.”

 

 

 

Hidden Brook Farm and Black Type Thoroughbreds' Hidden Connection (Connect) came out shortly after the Cox pair and covered a similar distance in 1:00 flat, pulling up six furlongs in a strong 1:12.60 with ReyLu Gutierrez aboard, who said the work was “awesome.”

Secret Oath (Arrogate) will face her peers in the Oaks, having finished third to Cyberknife and Barber Road (Race Day) in the Arkansas Derby and returned to the tab Friday morning. The Briland Farm homebred was timed in a slick :59.20 (:12.40, :23.60, :35.20), and Luis Saez, who takes over from Luis Contreras for the Oaks, was in to put the filly through her paces.

“I talked to [jockey] Luis [Contreras] after the race and he was sort of surprised with how much of an explosive kick she had at the three-eighths pole,” said Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas, whose last Oaks victory came courtesy of Overbrook Farm's Seaside Attraction (Seattle Slew) in 1990. “With that explosive kick at that point in the race, it was a little too much too soon. She got shuffled back at the start and got into contention but it was too much to ask. We ran in the Arkansas Derby for a million-and-a-quarter [dollars] and I thought we were the best horse going into the race and I still think we were the best.”

 

 

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American-Bred Mares Feature Prominently in Satsuki Sho

As has been well-documented, Japanese interests have–over the course of many years–accumulated some of the best bloodstock from all corners of the globe, and as evidenced in Riyadh and Dubai in the last couple of months, the Japanese are breeding horses that can compete anywhere at any level.

Classics season in the island nation kicked off last weekend with the running of the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas), with the colts' equivalent–the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas)–set for this weekend at Nakayama Racecourse. The 3-year-old offspring of some mares whose names will ring familiar dot the field of 18, with each of the four colts something of a winning chance.

Do Deuce (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) is a son of MGSW Dust and Diamonds (Vindication), who was purchased by Katsumi Yoshida for an even $1 million in foal to the late Pioneerof the Nile at Keeneland November in 2016, having been sold to Borges Torrealba Holdings for $900,000 at the same venue just days after her runner-up effort to Groupie Doll (Bowman's Band) in the 2012 GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint. A half-brother to MGSP Much Better (Pioneerof the Nile), Do Deuce capped an undefeated championship season in last years' G1 Asahi Hai Futurity and was the near-miss runner-up in the G2 Deep Impact Kinen on seasonal debut Mar. 6.

Danon Beluga (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) is the first foal from his dam Coasted (Tizway), winner of the P.G. Johnson S. and second in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf in 2016, who was knocked down to Yoshida for $1.3 million at the Fasig-Tipton November Sale in 2017. Just five months after his foaling date of Feb. 7, 2019, Danon Beluga was sent through the ring at the JRHA Select Foal Sale, hammering for $1.472 million, and is perfect in two tries, including a win at Group 2 level Feb. 13. Yuga Kawada, who was aboard the victorious Loves Only You (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in last year's GI Filly & Mare Turf, has the ride from gate one.

Yoshida was striking while the iron was hot at FTKNOV when acquiring then 8-year-old Palace Rumor (Royal Anthem) for $1.1 million in foal to Mineshaft a handful of months after the mare's produce of 2010, a Curlin colt named Palace Malice, took out the GI Belmont S. A half-brother to the MGSP stayer Iron Barows (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}), Justin Palace (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) also starred at the JRHA Sales, fetching nearly $1.8 million as a yearling in 2020. The dark bay colt won each of his first two starts over 10 furlongs and was last seen finishing runner-up in the G1 Hopeful S. over Sunday's course and distance when last seen Dec. 28.

The winner of the latter event was Killer Ability (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), a son of 2011 GI Hollywood Starlet S. heroine Killer Graces (Congaree), who realized $850,000 from Yoshida at FTKNOV back in 2012. The late January foal was capping a four-race preparation in the Hopeful, having won his maiden by seven lengths at second asking at the end of August before just missing in listed company in October. Killer Ability is the mount of the up-and-coming Takeshi Yokoyama, the regular rider of last year's Satsuki Sho winner, champion 3-year-old and Horse of the Year Efforia (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}).

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Count Again Somehow Under the Radar in Maker’s Mark Mile

The owner of some very solid West Coast form, Count Again (Awesome Again) nevertheless projects to be at least a little bit forgotten from a pari-mutuel perspective in a high-class renewal of the GI Maker's Mark Mile, the Good Friday feature at Keeneland.

A maiden winner during this track's fall meet in 2019 when under the care of Neil Howard, the bay won the 10-furlong GIII Singspiel S. for trainer Gail Cox in 2020, but has been kept between eight and nine panels since being switched to the barn of Phil D'Amato. Victorious in Del Mar's GII Seabiscuit H. in his first start for the new outfit at the tail end of that season, Count Again was third in last year's GI F.E. Kilroe S. and GII Eddie Read S., but was freshened off a last-of-five effort in the GII Del Mar Mile S. The break has seemed to do the trick, as he proved narrowly best first off the layoff in the GIII Thunder Road S. Feb. 5 and flew home to take this year's Kilroe Mar. 5.

Flavien Prat was in the boot for Count Again's two most recent successes, but the recently relocated rider will get a leg up from trainer Chad Brown on Juddmonte's European invader Masen (GB) (Kingman {GB}). A maiden winner and third in the G3 Tyros S. for Ger Lyons at two, the maternal grandson of Intercontinental (GB) (Danehill) faced elders in all three starts last term, winning the valuable Sovereign Path H. on Irish Champions Day at Leopardstown Sept. 11 ahead of a front-running tally in the Listed Knockaire S. Oct. 23, both over seven furlongs. It will be interesting to see if he is quick enough to lead this group.

Smooth Like Strait (Midnight Lute) also invades from the Golden State to launch his 5-year-old campaign. Never out of the top three in 2020, his lone victory came in all-the-way fashion in the GI Shoemaker Mile in May, but he was unlucky not to add to that total when runner-up and beaten a half-length or less on five occasions, including when making the majority of the running in the GI Breeders' Cup Mile.

The commonly owned Agnes Gold (Jpn) duo of In Love (Brz) and Ivar (Brz) each have earned Grade I plaudits over this course. In Love came with a stinging stretch rally beneath Alex Achard to cause a 12-1 upset of last October's Keeneland Turf Mile, but was farther back on Breeders' Cup day and rallied mildly to be seventh. Ivar won the 2020 Shadwell Mile and was a keen fourth in defense of his title last fall before settling much better and kicking home nicely to be third at longshot odds in the Breeders' Cup, a length behind Smooth Like Strait.

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