Dubai In Play For Godolphin’s Lemon Pop Following February S.

Stepping up to the top level for the first time in what has already been a productive career, Godolphin's Lemon Pop (Lemon Drop Kid) ran a strong 1600 metres and comfortably held a final-furlong rally from the classy Red le Zele (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) to land Sunday's February S. at Tokyo Racecourse. A fourth consecutive American-bred winner of the 'Win and You're In' qualifier for the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic, Lemon Pop will remain over shorter trips and holds an invitation to the G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen in five weeks' time. Despite the obvious appeal of such a journey, connections were playing it close to the vest post-race.

“Lemon Pop has been invited to Dubai, but we won't be making a decision on this for some time yet,” said Godolphin Japan President Harry Sweeney, who purchased the chestnut in the name of Paca Paca Farm for $70,000 as a weanling at the 2018 Keeneland November Sale. “Thrilled that Lemon Pop has won a Group 1 race at his first attempt and won in good style. We are relieved that he now has a JRA Group 1 on his curriculum vitae which will be very important for his next career whenever he finishes racing.”

Handed a good draw in gate seven, Lemon Pop was in the vanguard early, but was content to drift back a few spots as the mare Shonan Nadeshiko (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}) took the 16-strong field through an opening half-mile in a solid :46.60. Tipped out into the four path with about 600 metres to travel, Lemon Pop traveled strongly into the race and was under a long hold–having yet to be asked for his best–as the field hit the quarter pole. Finally given a dig by Ryusei Sakai approaching the final furlong, Lemon Pop pinched a break as Red le Zele flashed and loomed a momentary danger, but the favourite had the race well and truly in safe keeping and proved a clear-cut winner. Meisho Hario (Jpn) (Pyro) nearly unseated jockey Suguru Hamanaka at the break and was a long last down the backstretch, but rallied strongly to finish third.

The other US-bred winners of the race include Mozu Ascot (Frankel {GB}) in 2020 and Cafe Pharoah (American Pharoah) the last two years.

The victory was the second at group level for Lemon Pop, who rebounded from a tough loss in the G3 Musashino S. over course and distance Nov. 12 to reverse form with Gilded Mirror (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}) in the G3 Negishi S. over seven panels Jan. 29. Jockey Keita Tosaki had ridden Lemon Pop to each of his seven previous wins, but opted for fourth-placed Dry Stout (Jpn) (Sinister Minister) Sunday, much to Sweeney's surprise.

“[We] were shocked to read in the sports papers just two weeks ago that Keita Tosaki had decided to get off Lemon Pop to ride another horse,” said Sweeney. “We then had to scramble to find a replacement and we are delighted with Sakai-san's performance today. It was a pressure ride for him too as he was riding Lemon Pop, the favourite, for the first time and in a Group 1 race.”

Added the winning jockey: “I am grateful to be given the chance to ride such a strong and favored horse and am happy we won. He responded well and pulled away strongly all the way to the wire.”

'TDN Rising Star' Shirl's Speight (Speightstown) sat an inside trip from a disadvantageous low draw and was beaten about 10 lengths into ninth.

“From what the jockey was telling me, he wasn't enjoying the kickback that much, but I think he ran an OK race,” said trainer Roger Attfield. “I just think he's a superiour turf horse, but we gave it a try.”

Pedigree Notes:

On behalf of former Darley executive Olly Tait and his wife, Blandford Bloodstock went to 165,000gns for Unreachable from the Juddmonte draft at the 2012 Tattersalls December Mares Sale. Unreachable is a daughter of Harpia, a full-sister to the highly influential Danehill as well as Eagle Eyed and Shibboleth, etc., and is a half-sister to the stakes-placed First Word (Chester House) and the young American regional stallion Redesdale (Speightstown). This is also the family of Dundonnell (First Defence), a Group 3 winner in England, a listed winner in Hong Kong and Group 3-placed in Dubai.

Unreachable was offered in foal to Good Magic at the 2020 Keeneland January Sale but was led out unsold on a bid of $55,000. The mare was privately acquired by Jay and Christine Hayden's Saintsbury Farms and the colt the mare was carrying at the time–an Ontario-bred now named Equivoque–would go on to fetch $325,000 from China Horse Club/Gandharvi at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale. Unreachable is also the dam of a 2-year-old colt by Good Magic and a yearling colt by Maclean's Music. A Maximum Security colt out of Lemon Pop's half-sister Regal Rags (Union Rags) was sold for $110,000 at Keeneland November last fall. Unreachable, now 14 years of age, was entered for, but was unsurprisingly withdrawn from this year's Keeneland January Sale when again in foal to Maclean's Music.

Lemon Pop is the 10th worldwide Grade I/Group 1 winner for his sire, who was pensioned from stud duties at Lane's End in 2021 and is his second top-level winner out of a Giant's Causeway dam. The late 'Iron Horse' is now the broodmare sire of 32 G1SW/GISW.

Sunday, Tokyo, Japan
FEBRUARY S.-G1, ¥232,860,000, Tokyo, 2-19, 4yo/up, 1600m, 1:35.60, gd.
1–LEMON POP, 128, h, 5, by Lemon Drop Kid
1st Dam: Unreachable, by Giant's Causeway
2nd Dam: Harpia, by Danzig
3rd Dam: Razyana, by His Majesty
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. ($70,000 Wlg '18 KEENOV). O-Godolphin; B-Mr & Mrs Oliver S Tait (KY); T-Hiroyasu Tanaka; J-Ryusei Sakai; ¥123,403,000. Lifetime Record: 11-8-3-0, ¥288,439,000. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Red le Zele (Jpn), 128, h, 7, Lord Kanaloa (Jpn)–French Noir (Jpn), by French Deputy. O-Tokyo Horse Racing; B-Shadai Farm; ¥48,972,000.
3–Meisho Hario (Jpn), 128, h, 6, Pyro–Meisho Ohi (Jpn), by Manhattan Cafe (Jpn). O-Yoshio Matsumoto; B-Mishima Bokujo; ¥30,486,000.
Margins: 1HF, 2HF, 1. Odds: 1.20, 8.00, 9.70.
Also Ran: Dry Stout (Jpn), Admire Lupus (Jpn), Speedy Kick (Jpn), Helios (Jpn), Soliste Thunder (Jpn), Shirl's Speight, Kenshinko (Jpn), Sekifu (Jpn), Auvergne (Jpn), Keiai Turquoise (Jpn), T M South Dan (Jpn), Shonan Nadeshiko (Jpn), Jasper Prince.
Click for the JRA chart.

 

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Godolphin’s Lemon Pop Primed For Group 1 Success in February S.

Tokyo Racecourse plays host to the first of 24 Group 1s on the JRA circuit, Sunday's February S. going a one-turn mile on the dirt track, and with the race's two-time defending champion Cafe Pharoah (American Pharoah) preparing for next Saturday's G1 Saudi Cup and with would-be favourite Gilded Mirror (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}) having recently been retired due to injury, the race is there for the taking for the wonderfully consistent US-bred Lemon Pop (Lemon Drop Kid).

The 5-year-old, purchased for $70,000 as a weanling at the 2018 Keeneland November Sale, is a bona-fide horse for the course, as his only defeat in eight local appearances came at the hooves of Gilded Mirror in the G3 Musashino S. over the course and distance in November. He reversed form with the mare last time, taking the 1400-metre G3 Negishi S. by a half-length Jan. 29.

“Since last spring we've had the Negishi S. and then the February S. as the plan for him,” said assistant trainer Toshikiko Hokari. “He has good racing sense and obeys the jockey's orders, so even with the extended distance, he should be able to get a good result.”

Not insignificantly, Keita Tosaki, who has piloted Lemon Pop to each of his victories, opts to stick with the 4-year-old Dry Stout (Jpn) (Sinister Minister). Winner of four of his six trips to the post, the dark bay took the second leg of the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby in late 2021 to make it three on the trot and exits a runner-up effort in the Listed Subaru S. over seven furlongs at Chukyo Jan. 7.

“He's very sharp and his reactions have been good in training,” said Tosaki. “I've been riding him for some time, so I can see how he's more experienced now. I have always thought he's a capable horse, and I'm excited about it being a [Group] 1 this time and hope he can win.”

The well-traveled Red le Zele (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) swerves next weekend's G3 Riyadh Dirt Sprint in favor of the February, a race in which he was fourth and sixth, respectively, to Cafe Pharoah the last two years. Runner-up to Switzerland (Speightstown) in last year's G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen, the 7-year-old downed T M South Dan (Jpn) (South Vigorous) in the Listed Tokyo Hai last October and was last seen finishing a running-on fourth to last year's Riyadh Dirt Sprint hero Dancing Prince (Jpn) (Pas de Trois {Jpn}) in the Listed JBC Sprint the following month.

Charles Fipke breaks new ground Sunday when his homebred 'TDN Rising Star' Shirl's Speight (Speightstown) becomes the first foreign raider to contest the February S. The upset winner of the GI Maker's Mark Mile last season, the bay makes his first start on the dirt since a third to Mind Control (Stay Thirsty) in the GIII Salvator Mile last June and his first since running champion Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) to three-parts of a length in the GI Breeders' Cup Mile at Keeneland last November.

“He's a very versatile horse, but watching videos of him here and watching him this morning, he looks like he's handling the track very well and if he can run to his true ability, he will be very competitive–but it is unknown to me,” commented trainer Roger Attfield, who has tabbed Joao Moreira to ride.

The February S. serves as a 'Win and You're In' qualifier for the 2023 GI Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar.

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Godolphin’s Lemon Pop Prevails In February S. Prep

From the first time he first set foot on the racetrack in late 2020, Lemon Pop (Lemon Drop Kid) has always hinted at top ability, and the beautifully bred 5-year-old scooped the first major prize of his career with a hard-fought victory in Sunday's G3 Negishi S., a stepping-stone to the G1 February S. in three weeks' time.

Away awkwardly from the 13 hole, the $70,000 Keeneland November weanling purchase on behalf of Godolphin improved to race in the second flight of horses about three away from the inside for the opening half-mile. Pulled out into the four path leaving the 600-metre pole, the chestnut was roused to the front with a little more than a furlong to race and finished willingly to hold off the fast-finishing Gilded Mirror (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}), reversing the form of their last meeting in this track's G3 Musashino S. over a mile Nov. 12. Lemon Pop was running his record over the Tokyo 1400 metres to five-from-five.

Unreachable, a daughter of the legendary Danehill (Danzig)'s Grade III-winning full-sister Harpia and also a half to New York-based stallion Redesdale (Speightstown), was unplaced in a pair of 3-year-old starts for Juddmonte and Dermot Weld and was purchased by Blandford Bloodstock, on behalf of former Darley Chief Operating Officer Olly Tait and his wife Amber, for 165,000gns ($278,915) at the 2012 Tattersalls December Mare sale.

Unreachable was led out unsold on a bid of $55,000 at the 2020 Keeneland January Sale, and the foal she was carrying at the time, a Good Magic colt, was purchased by China Horse Club/Gandharvi for $325,000 at Fasig-Tipton Saratoga in 2021 before CHC bought out their partner for $240,000 during the HORA section of last year's KEENOV sale. The mare is also responsible for a 2-year-old colt by Good Magic, a yearling Maclean's Music colt and is due to that Hill 'n' Dale sire for 2023. Lemon Pop's third dam also includes Danehill's accomplished full-brothers Eagle Eyed and Shibboleth. Lemon Pop is the 107th stakes winer and 49th graded/group winner for the now 27-year-old Lemon Drop Kid.

Sunday, Tokyo, Japan
NEGISHI S.-G3, ¥76,810,000, Tokyo, 1-29, 4yo/up, 1400m, 1:22.50, gd.
1–LEMON POP, 126, h, 5, by Lemon Drop Kid
1st Dam: Unreachable, by Giant's Causeway
2nd Dam: Harpia, by Danzig
3rd Dam: Razyana, by His Majesty
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN. 1ST GROUP WIN. ($70,000 Wlg '18 KEENOV). O-Godolphin; B-Mr & Mrs Oliver S Tait (KY); T-Hiroyasu Tanaka; J-Keita Tosaki; ¥40,567,000. Lifetime Record: 10-7-3-0, $1,313,929. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Gilded Mirror (Jpn), 121, m, 6, Orfevre (Jpn)–Titan Queen, by Tiznow. O-Silk Racing; B-Northern Farm; ¥16,164,000.
3–Battle Cry (Jpn), 123, c, 4, Isla Bonita (Jpn)–Dear Comet (Jpn), by King Kamehameha (Jpn). O-G Riviere·Racing; B-Dearest Club; ¥10,082,000.
Margins: HF, 3/4, NK. Odds: 0.60, 4.10, 11.80.
Click for the JRA chart.

 

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Notable US-Breds in Japan: Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for Wednesday's first JRA meetings of 2022 at Chukyo and Nakayama Racecourses:

Wednesday, January 5, 2022
4th-NKY, ¥11,400,000 ($99k), Newcomers, 3yo, 1800m
WONDERFUL HEAVEN (f, 3, Hard Spun–Couture Cat, by Storm Cat), a half-sister to SP High Fashion Diva (Girolamo), is out of a winning daughter of GSW & MGISP Runway Model (Petionville), the dam of four-time Grade I winner, 'TDN Rising Star' and current Gainesway stallion McKinzie (Street Sense). A $52K purchase at Keeneland November in 2019, the late January foal matured into a $180K KEESEP yearling the following fall. Wonderful Heaven is bred on the same Hard Spun cross over Storm Cat responsible for MGISW Hard Not to Like. B-Kenneth & Sarah Ramsey (KY)

12th-CKO, ¥21,110,000 ($183k), Allowance, 4yo/up, 1400m
LEMON POP (c, 4, Lemon Drop Kid–Unreachable, by Giant's Causeway) won the first two starts of his career, including the Cattleya S. (allowance) in November 2020, and most recently returned from a 13-month layoff to finish a strong second going this distance at Hanshin Dec. 12. A $70K KEENOV acquisition by Paca Paca Farm on behalf of Godolphin in 2018, the chestnut is a maternal grandson of MGSW Harpia (Danzig), a full-sister to the legendary Danehill as well as MGSW Eagle Eyed and GSW Shibboleth. B-Mr & Mrs Oliver S Tait (KY)

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