July 2005 Vol.13 NO.3
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July 2005 Vol.13 NO.3 2 4 5 6 Review of JRA Races in 2005 Tokyo Yushun 2005 Yushun Himba Australia Day 1st Half of 2005 (Japanese Derby) (GI) (Japanese Oaks) (GI) Asia Week Japanese Graded Race Results Deep Impact (by Sunday Silence) achieved the second leg of the Triple Crown for Classic races for 3-year-olds, winning the Tokyo Yushun. Atop Deep Impact is jockey Yutaka Take. On the left is the horse’s owner Mr. Makoto Kaneko together with his wife. Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Yoshinobu Shimamura is second from the left. On the right is trainer Yasuo Ikee. Review of JRA Races in 1st Half of 2005 By Kenichi Nomoto Reporter for the Nihon Keizai Shimbun also opened to for- victories was snapped at the Champions eign-trained horses. Mile, showed strength, finishing third at Makybe Diva (GB, the Yasuda Kinen. Bullish Luck put up a by Desert King, good fight to finish fourth, resulting in a IRE), said to be the demonstration of the depth of the Hong strongest mare in Kong challengers in both sprints and the Australian history, mile. was entered in the Tenno Sho (Spring) Deep Impact Lives Up to (GI) in Kyoto on May 1, attracting His Name attention. Makybe In Classic races for 3-year-olds, Deep Diva finished sev- Impact (by Sunday Silence, USA, out of enth in the April Wind in her Hair, IRE) won the Satsuki Stakes and later in Thirteenth pick Suzuka Mambo (by Sunday Silence, USA, out of Spring Sho (GI) and the Japanese Derby (GI). the Tenno Sho Mambo, GB) won the 131st Tenno Sho (Spring), while Australian challenger He was the sixth undefeated horse in Makybe Diva (UK) (by Desert King, IRE, out of Tugela, USA) finished seventh. (Spring). Her team history to win both crowns. Deep Impact members cited her ran away with a four-length lead in his “unsuitability to debut race last December at Hanshin During the first half of 2005, Japan’s Japan’s hard tracks” as the reason for Racecourse. At the beginning of this horse racing industry began to see a ray her losses, but it is certain that she revi- year he had consecutive wins in the of hope in escaping its slump. JRA’s talized the 3,000-meter class G1, which Wakagoma Stakes and Yayoi Sho (GII), annual profits have declined for seven has been said to be in a bit of a slump in and he entered the Satsuki Sho as the years running since 1998, and as of the recent years. end of the spring racing season (the sec- overwhelming favorite. He jolted fans and officials at the Satsuki Sho when he ond week in June), they had declined 1.9 International Tie-ups percent compared to the year before. nearly stumbled after a slow start, but However, the breadth of the downturn moved up steadily from mid-race and In sprints, an agreement with steadily shrank from a three percent galloped away down the stretch, leaving Australia’s Racing Victoria and the decline at the end of February and, second place finisher Six Sense (by U.K.’s Ascot Racecourse led to the beginning in May, the numbers Sunday Silence, USA) behind by 2 1/2 launch of the Global Sprint Challenge. improved with each successive week. lengths. He was an unprecedented Two races have already been completed Signs of an overall economic recovery favorite six weeks later at the Japanese in Australia and Hong Kong’s Cape of are visible, with the rate of GDP growth Derby, with the highest ratio of win bets Good Hope (GB, by Inchinor, GB) leads in the first quarter of 2005 calculated at placed in racing history, 73.4 percent. in the point contest. He was also entered 4.9 percent on an annual basis. The indi- Even though he was slow out of the gate in last year’s Sprinters Stakes, finishing cators of improving economic condi- here as well, he moved up with around third, and is expected to visit Japan in tions were particularly striking in the 800 meters left to go and quickly took the fall. In mile races, JRA and the Tokyo metropolitan area and in several the lead down the stretch. This time, he Hong Kong Jockey Club announced the prefectures in central Japan. With the left second place Inti Raimi (by Special establishment of the Asian Mile appearance of long-awaited star horse Week, JPN) behind by five lengths. He Challenge in March. It was decided that Deep Impact, an air of optimism can tied the course record of 2:23.3 set by a US$1 million bonus would be paid to also be noted in the industry. King Kamehameha (by Kingmambo, the horse that won both the May 14 From the perspective of international USA) last year, but his split time over Champions Mile at Hong Kong’s Sha races, Japanese racing also entered a the first 1,200 meters was 2.8 seconds Tin Racecourse and the June 5 Yasuda new phase this year. Continuing devel- slower than the previous year, so his win Kinen (GI). Hokkaido NAR’s Cosmo opments included a broad increase in the could be said to be of extremely high Bulk (by Zagreb, GB) suffered a stun- number of international races and agree- merit. JRA handicappers have granted ning 10th place defeat in the Champions ments with various countries to establish Derby winner Deep Impact a provisional Mile. The first, second and fourth place new sprint and mile series. International 119 rating. finishers in the Champions Mile — races were increased from 22 last year to Bullish Luck, Silent Witness and 60, and the Spring and Autumn Tenno Fillies Shine Bowman’s Crossing — were entered in Sho (GI) races, which had even exclud- the Yasuda Kinen. Silent Witness, Races for 3-year-old fillies featured ed imported racehorses up to 1999, were whose record string of 17 consecutive two leading contenders, Rhein Kraft (by End Sweep, USA) and Cesario (by Older Horses With three strong entrants from Hong Special Week, JPN). Following an easy Kong, opinions on the picks for the win in last year’s Fantasy Stakes (GIII), In contrast to the Classic races for 3- Yasuda Kinen were split, but Asakusa Rhein Kraft was bested by a small mar- year-olds, in which the main challengers Denen (by Singspiel, IRE), winner of the gin and finished third in the race that showed their crowns the queen of the 2-year-olds, the strength in an Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (GI). However, orderly fashion, the in 2005 she held on for her third victory events for older in the Fillies’ Review (GIII), the run-up horses were striking to the Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas, for the absence of GI). She conceded Cesario the favorite’s leading contenders ranking in the Oka Sho, but, starting far and confusing out- to the outside in Gate 17, promptly comes in all the seized a good position and quickly major races. In the acquired the lead in the stretch. She held Tenno Sho off Cesario, who was in furious pursuit (Spring), where down to the wire, to win by a head. Makybe Diva’s par- Because Rhein Kraft’s sire excelled at ticipation attracted sprint and mile contests, she was entered attention, Zenno in the NHK Mile Cup (GI), with the Rob Roy (by same 1,600-meter distance, after the Sunday Silence, Rhein Kraft (by End Sweep, USA, out of Must Be Loved) follows up her Oka Sho Oka Sho. This time, she effortlessly USA) and Tap (GI) victory with a win in the NHK Mile Cup (GI). moved into fine position for an easy Dance City (by win. Daring Heart (by Sunday Silence, Pleasant Tap, USA), who captured first preliminary Keio Hai Spring Cup, rode USA) followed her third place finish in and second in last year’s Arima Kinen the crest of his success to achieve his first the Oka Sho by coming in second, mak- (Grand Prix, GI), far outrunning the rest of GI victory at 6 years of age. Singspiel, the ing it the first time since the race’s inau- the horses, both skipped the race. In a 1996 Japan Cup (International, GI) win- guration that fillies had captured first series of lead-up events, the pattern of ner, had produced his first GI winner in and second. It was also the first win by a upsets in which different winners emerged Japan. On the other hand, Meisho Bowler filly since Seeking the Pearl’s victory one after the other continued. Suzuka (by Taiki Shuttle, USA), who turned in a eight years earlier. Even though the Mambo (by Sunday Silence, USA), in the third place finish in last year’s Satsuki races are the same distance, there had lower tier of the 18 entrants at the Tenno Sho (GI), picked up his first GI win at the been no previous example of fillies Sho as the 13th pick, broke from a good age of 4 by flying away, using a bold moving from the Oka Sho to the NHK position down the stretch to best 7-year- strategy to grab the lead in the February Mile Cup and this year’s result will old Big Gold (by Brian’s Time, USA), Stakes GI dirt race. His mount, jockey undoubtedly have an impact on fillies’ who finished second after holding the Yuichi Fukunaga, whose famous jockey activities from next year on. lead, and recorded the highest trifecta pay- father Yoichi had great success during the The other major contender, Cesario, off in GI history, ¥1,939,420.