Tag: japanese racing

Havana Grey’s Yakushima Blooms In Tokyo’s Crocus S.

Yakushima (GB), the first and only runner in Japan for his 2022 European, British and Irish Champion Sire, became the sixth stakes winner for Havana Grey with a speedy score in the Listed Crocus S. at Tokyo on Saturday.

Third choice in the field at 3-1, the Godolphin colourbearer was part of the early pace discussion and shadowed From Dusk (Bolt d'Oro) and Smooth Velvet (Jpn) (Discreet Cat) through splits of :23.50 for the quarter and :47.30 for the half mile. He remained in shouting distance of the leaders and saved every inch of ground on the bend.

Given a small nudge from Smooth Velvet to his outside entering the stretch, he recovered and charged up in between the two frontrunners to take over a quarter-mile from home. Satono Wille (Jpn) (Declaration Of War) gave chase, but Yakushima rolled across the line a three-quarter length winner. It was two lengths back to the group-placed From Dusk.

The grey was a first-out winner against newcomers at Kokura over 1200 metres last July, and placed third in the Listed Kikyo S. going this trip at Chukyo in September. Fifth in the G2 Keio Hai Nisai S. behind Obamburumai (Jpn) (Discreet Cat) and From Dusk on Nov. 5, he ended his juvenile season with a fourth in the Sports Hochi Hai Chukyo Nisai S. Warming up for this run, the colt was third in a 1200-metre 3-year-old Class 1 affair at Chukyo on Jan. 7.

A half-brother to Good Vibes (GB) (Due Diligence), who won the G3 Cornwallis S. and was third in the G2 Lowther S., Yakushima is followed by fillies by Showcasing (GB) and Due Diligence born in 2021 and 2022, respectively. The Showcasing filly went to Carmel Stud for 120,000gns at the Tattersalls December Foal Sale in 2021.

Under the second dam is the G2 Flying Childers S. runner-up Astrophysics (GB) (Paco Boy {Ire}), while both G3 Ballyogan S. heroine Age Of Chivalry (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) and GI Hollywood Derby second Sebastian Flyte (GB) (Observatory) are also members of the extended family.

 

Saturday's Result:
CROCUS S.-Listed, ¥38,300,000, Tokyo, 1-28, 3yo, 1400mT, 1:21.10, gd/fm.
1–YAKUSHIMA (GB), 123, c, 3, Havana Grey (GB)
                1st Dam: Satsuma (GB), by Compton Place (GB)
                2nd Dam: Jodrell Bank (Ire), by Observatory
                3rd Dam: Aravonia (GB), by Night Shift
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN. (130,000gns Wlg '20 TATNOV).
O-Godolphin. B-Whitsbury Manor Stud (GB). T-Ryo Terashima.
J-Christophe Lemaire. ¥20,000,000. Lifetime Record: 6-2-0-2,
¥39,237,000. *1/2 to Good Vibes (GB) (Due Diligence),
GSW-Eng, $126,592.
2–Satono Wille (Jpn), 123, c, 3, Declaration Of War–Daiwa
Gelato (Jpn), by Fuji Kiseki (Jpn). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-Hajime
Satomi. B-Fujiwara Farm (Jpn). T-Yuichi Shikato. ¥8,000,000.
3–From Dusk, 123, c, 3, Bolt d'Oro–Foolish Cause, by Giant's
Causeway. ($200,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP; $900,000 2yo '22
OBSMAR). O-Susumu Fujita. B-Springhouse Farm (KY).
T-HIdeyuki Mori. ¥5,000,000.
Margins: 3/4, 2, 3/4. Odds: 3.00, 13.90, 2.50.
Also Ran: Lord Defeat (Jpn), Smooth Velvet (Jpn), Nishino Piu Mosso (Jpn), Raifort (Jpn), Cool Moore (Jpn), Blue In Green (Jpn), Boukephalas (Jpn). Click for the chart and video.

 

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12 Questions: Heather Anderson

With Heather Anderson, TDN Associate International Editor

First job in the Thoroughbred industry?

Interning at a reproduction centre at Peterson & Smith down in Florida.

Biggest influence on your career?

My parents. Neither are in the industry, but they gave me a good foundation and the right mind set to succeed.

Favourite racehorse of all time, and why?

Tiznow. He's still the only dual winner of the GI Breeders' Cup Classic.

Who will be champion first-season sire in 2023?

Land Force.

Greatest race in the world?

G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Most of the top middle-distance international form lines intersect at ParisLongchamp.

If you could be someone else in the industry for a day who would it be, and why?

Ryan Moore. He's one of the best jockeys in the world and has a fair poker face, win, lose, or draw.

Emerging talent in the industry (human)?

Seina Imamura. She now has 50 Japan Racing Association winners to her credit, and is only the fifth Japanese jockey to accomplish that feat in her rookie year.

Horse TDN should have made a Rising Star, and didn't?

From a few years back, Tis Marvellous.

Under-the-radar stallion?

Dream Ahead, even though he's sired several winners at the highest level.

Friday night treat?

A pint of gelato and a good book.

Guilty pleasure outside racing?

I'm a big fan of The Great British Baking Show, and enjoy baking.

Race I wish I had been there for…

It was before my time, but Mill Reef's victory in the 1971 Arc. He was such a cool, little horse.

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Colts Vying For Just Desserts In Asahi Hai Futurity

Rated 109, just like fellow group winners Dolce More (Jpn) (Jpn) and Obamburumai (Jpn) (Discreet Cat), All Parfait (Jpn) (Real Steel {Jpn}) is one of the more fancied runners as 17 colts line up for the 1600-metre G1 Asahi Hai Futurity S. at Hanshin on Sunday. Leaving from post three, the Ryoichi Endo homebred has won his past two starts, after running second in a Tokyo maiden in June. Resuming over this trip in a maiden at Nakayama on Oct. 2, he won by two lengths, prior to defeating Danon Touchdown (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {GB}) by a half-length over this course and distance in the G2 Daily Hai Nisai S. on Nov. 12.

Takuya Ono has ridden the horse in all his races and said, “He's coming along nicely, but he has to transport over to the track, so I don't want to overdo things with him. He found a good rhythm in the race last time after starting from a wide gate, and was strong in the finish.”

Undefeated in two starts–a Sapporo newcomer affair in August, and besting Granite (Jpn) (Danon Ballade {Jpn}) by 1 1/4 lengths in Tokyo's G3 Saudi Arabia Royal Cup on Oct. 8, Dolce More has been pleasing trainer Naosuke Sugai in his gallops.

“He has been training well, and while he's not one to really catch the eye, he's done enough work and looks fine,” said Sugai. “In his final work, checking his rhythm was more important than his time, and his breathing's been good. He has gained some weight, but that's him developing and it should help him in a race. He ran right-handed in his first race and I'm not worried about it being his first time at the course this time. He doesn't have any bad habits and he's quite a serious horse that can race well, so I don't have any worries with him and hope he can run a good race.”

Last year's champion sire in Britain and Ireland, and this term's European champion sire elect, Frankel (GB) has a pair of colts entered to build on his earlier Japanese successes in the winners Labeling (GB) and Tinia (Ire). Three of Frankel's four stakes winners in the Land of the Rising Sun are Group 1 scorers, with 2020 hero Grenadier Guards (Jpn) holding the stakes record for this race in a snappy 1:32.30. In addition, his Soul Stirring (Jpn) won the G1 Hanshin Juvenile Fillies–the filly equivalent–as his very first top-level winner back in 2016, the first year the Juddmonte supremo had runners.

Trainer Yuichi Shikato commented on the prospects of Labeling, “There hasn't been long between races, but he's in very good shape. He ran a good race last time, and with the ability he seems to have, I'll look forward to things from now.”

Bolt d'Oro, who is an excruciatingly close three-way battle with Justify and Good Magic for leading freshman sire Stateside, is represented by $200,000 Keeneland September yearling turned $900,000 OBS March juvenile From Dusk. The progressive colt was second by a length in the G2 Keio Hai Nisai S. to the 109-rated Obamburumai on Nov. 5.

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‘Yell’ing With Joy As Group 1 Action Returns To Japan With Sprinters S.

On hiatus for the past several months, Group 1 action returns to the Land of the Rising Sun in Nakayama's 1200-metre Sprinters S. on Sunday. Sixteen horses have stood their ground, among them last out G2 Sankei Sho Centaur S. heroine Meikei Yell (Jpn) (Mikki Isle {Jpn}). Leaving from gate 13, the 4-year-old filly and 2-1 morning line pick is aiming to become the first horse to complete the Centaur/Sprinters S. double since Tower Of London (Jpn) (Raven's Pass) in 2019. Trained by Hidenori Take, the Nagoya Keibo Co. Ltd colourbearer will have Kenichi Ikezoe in the irons.

Assistant trainer Kaname Ogino said, “Everything went to plan in her last race, and the jockey got the best out of her. She has returned to training again and seems relaxed, which is a good thing. There doesn't seem to be any change in her condition.”

 

Brilliance Their Stock In Trade

Something of a novelty in Japan, Sunday Racing's German-bred Schnell Meister (Ger) (Kingman {GB}), who scored his Group 1 win in the G1 NHK Mile Cup in 2021 and was runner-up in the G1 Yasuda Kinen all the way back in June, will fly the flag for his Juddmonte sire. Connections did take a gamble and send him to Dubai to start his season in March, but it did not pay off. Half a world away, others looking to give their Juddmonte sire a fruitful weekend at the highest level include 'TDN Rising Stars' Habana (Ger) (G1 Qatar Prix Marcel Boussac, 1400mT), and Kinross (GB) (G1 Qatar Prix de la Foret, 1400mT) on Arc Day. The day prior, fellow Rising Star Laurel (GB) and Mrs Fitzherbert (Ire) go to the post in Newmarket's one-mile G1 Royal Bahrain Sun Chariot S. for the 11-year-old, who sits ninth on the TDN Europe General Sires List this year. A victory by the 4-year-old entire at Nakayama would nudge Kingman up to seventh, after the $1,198,977 was added to his progeny earnings.

Trainer Takahisa Tezuka said, “His condition wasn't so good after Dubai, even though he did manage to finish second in the Yasuda Kinen. After his usual summer break at Northern Farm Tenei, he returned to the stable early in September. He looks his usual self, if not a little bigger, but has moved well enough in recent work.”

 

Age Before Beauty?

Second choice is Mutsuhiro Namura homebred Namura Clair (Jpn) (Mikki Isle {Jpn}) at 3-1, who sneaks into the field under a flyweight of just 117 pounds. Classic-placed over 1600 metres in the G1 Japanese 1000 Guineas this spring, the June 12 G3 Hakodate Sprint S. victress was third over this trip in the G3 TV Nishinippon Corp. Sho Kitakyushu Kinen on Aug. 21.

If she prevails, she would be the sixth Group or Grade 1 winner tracing to 1993 G1 Prix Morny/G1 Prix de la Salamandre heroine and blue hen Coup De Genie (Mr. Prospector) and first in Japan. Appropriately considering the international stakes on offer this weekend, one of that sextet, the now Japanese-based sire Bago (Fr) (Nashwan), claimed the 2004 G1 Prix de l'Arc de Tromphe among his many Group 1 victories.

Trainer Kodai Hasegawa said, “She has had a break at the farm with this race in mind. She has recovered well, and has been able to handle her training workload since. It has also been good to have had some time between races.”

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