It was a dogfight for pacesetting duties between Mad Cool and Victor The Winner from the bell, with the former conceding the advantage to sit in third on the backstretch as Win Carnelian (Jpn) (Screen Hero {Jpn}) moved to second. Saving all the ground on the fence while drafting off of Victor The Winner, the 8-1 sixth choice charged through a gap along the inside with 400 metres to travel as the leader drifted toward the centre of the course. The exceedingly deep ground didn't phase the 5-year-old entire, who inched by the determined Hong Kong raider and set sail for the line at the 150-metre point. Gobbling up ground directly behind Mad Cool, Namura Clair was unleashing a furious rally, but she did not hit the front until a stride past the wire. Victor The Winner plugged on to be third. Favoured Lugal (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}) raced near the pace, but could not mount a strong challenge at the end and faded to 10th.

“I am so glad to have won this race after our narrow defeat last fall [in the Sprinters S.],” said winning jockey Ryusei Sakai. “He broke well and we were in an ideal position, right behind the pace, throughout the trip. I've been riding this horse from early in his career and the connections had been eyeing this race from the beginning, but he still has room for improvement so I look forward to his future as well.”

A winner of four of his six starts at three, the bay was third to Namura Clair in the G3 Silk Road S. last January, before taking his first stake, the Listed Shunrai S., at Nakayama in April of 2023. Second by only a nose to Mama Cocha (Jpn) (Kurofune) in the G1 Sprinters S. last October, he signed off his 4-year-old campaign with an eighth in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Sprint on Dec. 10. Sunday marked his 4-year-old bow.

Pedigree Notes

Mad Cool is the 16th Group 1 winner for his Yeomanstown Stud-based sire, who has 102 stakes winners (59 group winners) on an international scale. Dark Angel covered 166 mares in 2023, and he has three stakes winners out of Indian Ridge mares. G2 July S. hero Alhebayeb (Ire) is his other group/graded winner bred on this cross.

The late Indian Ridge has made quite a mark as a broodmare sire, as his daughters have foaled 114 stakes winners to date. A total of 68 group winners are sprinkled among them, with 19 top-level winners following Mad Cool's Takamatsunomiya Kinen tally.

The seventh foal and fifth winner for his G3 Gladness S.-winning dam, Mad Cool was purchased for €225,000 out of the Goffs November Foal Sale in 2019 by Katsumi Yoshida. He is a half-brother to G3 Silver Flash S. third A Ma Chere (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}), the winning 4-year-old gelding Partisan Hero (Ire) (Muhaarar {GB}) and the 3-year-old filly Campari Soda (Ire) (Showcasing {GB}), who has yet to race. Besides her Gladness win, Mad About You was placed four times at the highest level in Ireland and France.

Her dam Irresistible Jewel (Ire) (Danehill) won both the G2 Ribblesdale S. and G3 Blandford S. and was also placed in the G1 Prix de l'Opera. At stud, she foaled fellow G2 Ribblesdale S. heroine and G1 Irish Oaks third Princess Highway to the cover of Street Cry (Ire), as well as G1 Irish St. Leger winner Royal Diamond (Ire) (King's Best). Mad Cool is also kin to G1 Irish 1000 Guineas heroine Homeless Songs (Ire) (Frankel {GB}).

Sunday, Chukyo, Japan
TAKAMATSUNOMIYA KINEN-G1, ¥329,400,000, Chukyo, 3-24, 4yo/up, 1200mT, 1:08.90, sf.
1–MAD COOL (IRE), 128, h, 5, Dark Angel (Ire)
                1st Dam: Mad About You (Ire) (GSW & MG1SP-Ire,
                                G1SP-Fr, $495,023), by Indian Ridge (Ire)
                2nd Dam: Irresistible Jewel (Ire), by Danehill
                3rd Dam: In Anticipation (Ire), by Sadler's Wells
1ST GROUP WIN. 1ST GROUP 1 WIN. (€225,000 Wlg '19
GOFNOV). O-Sunday Racing; B-Moyglare Stud Farm Ltd (Ire);
T-Manabu Ikezoe; J-Ryusei Sakai; ¥173,780,000. Lifetime
Record: 12-6-1-3, ¥333,466,000. *1/2 to A Ma Chere (Ire)
(Kodiac {GB}), GSP-Ire. Click for the
   free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Werk Nick
   Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Namura Clair (Jpn), 123, m, 5, Mikki Isle (Jpn)–Sun Queen, by
Storm Cat. O-Mutsuhiro Namura; B-Tanikawa Farm (Jpn);
¥69,080,000.
3–Victor The Winner (Aus), 128, h, 8, Toronado (Ire)–Noetic
(Aus), by Cape Cross (Ire). (A$180,000 Ylg '20 INGMAR). O-Yun
Lau Chu; B-Mr. A Sangster (Aus); ¥43,540,000.
Margins: HD, 3, 1HF. Odds: 8.60, 4.40, 8.60.
Also ran: Win Caernelian (Jpn), Lotus Land, Toshin Macau (Jpn), Big Caesar (Jpn), Mama Cocha (Jpn), Meikei Yell (Jpn), Lugal (Jpn), Divina (Jpn), Win Marvel (Jpn), Schwarz Kaiser (Ire), So Dazzling (Jpn), Mozu Meimei (Jpn), Matenro Orion (Jpn), Champagne Color (Jpn), T M Spada (Jpn). Click for the JRA chart & video.

Tooth and nail as MAD COOL hangs on to beat NAMURA CLAIR in the G1 1200m Takamatsunomiya Kinen on a boggy Chukyo

They ran 1.08.9 somehow, a very tough test #JRA pic.twitter.com/JCilmynhBo

— Graham Pavey (@LongBallToNoOne) March 24, 2024

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