Japan Horse Racing Tips-Umanity.jp|KOKURA KINEN(G3) is held this weekend

A star-studded field looks guaranteed this coming Sunday (June 28), when the Grade 1 Takarazuka Kinen will be run at Hanshin Racecourse, closing out the top-class action for the first half of the year here in Japan. Although the likes of Almond Eye and Fierement won’t be taking on the race, the fans who vote for the horses they want to see in the line-up would be pretty satisfied to see the big names that will battle it out for the honors on Sunday.
The Takarazuka Kinen was first run in 1960, and is a race for 3-year-olds and up over 2,200 meters on the inner turf track at Hanshin. It became an international race in 1997, and although it hasn’t seen too many runners from overseas, Werther from Hong Kong certainly gave it his best shot in 2018, when he finished a close second in the race. This year sees eighteen nominations for a maximum eighteen runner field, and there are no less than eight Grade 1 winners among the nominees. Four-year-olds and up carry 58kg, with a 2kg allowance for fillies and mares, and 3-year-olds get to carry 53kg, although no 3-year-old has ever won the race. One factor will be the weather leading into the weekend, as connections eye the ground condition their runners will encounter, with Japan’s rainy season currently underway.
Some of the lead up races to this year’s Takarazuka Kinen have included the Grade 1 Osaka Hai over 2,000 meters at Hanshin in April, the Grade 2 Kinko Sho over 2,000 meters at Chukyo in March, and the Tenno Sho (Spring) run over 3,200 meters at Kyoto in May. Only two first favorites have won in the last ten years, the last one being Gold Ship in 2014, and during the same time period, six 5-year-olds have won, and they’ve achieved that in the last six years, proving their recent dominance. Last year, Lys Gracieux became just the fourth filly or mare to win the Takarazuka Kinen. Record time for the race was set by Earnestly, when he won in 2 minutes 10.1 seconds in 2011. The winner this year will receive JPY 150 million, together with automatic entry to this year’s Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland and the Cox Plate in Australia.
Final declarations and the barrier draw will come out later in the week. The Takarazuka Kinen will be Race 11 on Sunday’s card at Hanshin, with a post time of 15:40 here in Japan.
Here’s a look at some of the runners expected to take part:

Saturnalia - The third pick in the fans’ poll, Saturnalia comes to the race after winning the Grade 2 Kinko Sho over 2,000 meters at Chukyo in March, his only start so far this year. Last year’s Grade 1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) winner couldn’t follow that up with a Derby win, but he’s started 2020 in good form. Assistant trainer Takashi Kotaki said, “He was helped last time by the lack of noise due to no spectators, and everything went smoothly in the preliminaries. He adjusted well to the slow pace of the race, and ran out a comfortable winner. He’s been at the farm since, but on his return to the stable, he’s been his usual self as he prepares for this race.” Jockey Christophe Lemaire is set to ride Saturnalia.

Lucky Lilac - This year’s Grade 1 Osaka Hai winner, the 5-year-old mare by Orfevre received the most votes from the poll, excluding only Almond Eye. As she has matured, she certainly seems to be on an upward curve, as is indicated by the words of trainer Mikio Matsunaga. “After her last race, she went to Northern Farm Shigaraki, and although restrictions on movement meant I wasn’t able to check on her, she has come back looking really well. Her movement is good, and she has filled out in a way that really makes her look bigger and stronger,” commented the trainer. Two of Lucky Lilac’s three Grade 1 wins have come with foreign jockeys in the saddle, and Mirco Demuro gets the chance to win his third Grade 1 title this year.

Chrono Genesis - The 4-year-old filly by Bago has an impressive record with five wins from ten starts, and has only been unplaced once, that being when she finished fifth in last year’s Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup. Her record in top-level races speaks for itself, and she just got beaten a neck last time by Lucky Lilac. Trainer Takashi Saito believes she can run another big race. “Last time she drew a wide gate, but quickly got into a position where she settled into stride well. She finished second in the end, but showed her ability, which has definitely improved as she’s gotten older. She returned from the farm on June 5, and is the type to pick up quickly in training,” said the trainer. Jockey Yuichi Kitamura has ridden the filly in all her races, and that will be the case this time as well.

Blast Onepiece - A more than 50% win strike rate makes the 5-year-old’s losses easier to bear, and it is interesting that he either wins or finishes out of the top three. He won his first race this year in the Grade 2 American Jockey Club Cup over 2,200 meters at Nakayama in January, but then had to settle for seventh most recently in the Grade 1 Osaka Hai in April. That last run hasn’t fazed trainer Masahiro Otake too much, and he recently said: “He didn’t go forward quite how I thought he might from an inside draw last time, and at the end of the race he wasn’t able to get on terms with the others that had got the better ground. He’s come back refreshed from his usual stay at the farm, and he’s been running smoothly in training.”

Glory Vase - It’ll be the lightly raced 5-year-old’s first race this year after Dubai was cancelled, making his last run his win in the Grade 1 Hong Kong Vase last December. He’s had ten career starts for four wins, and it will be the first time for the Silk Racing Co. Ltd. owned son of Deep Impact to run at Hanshin. Trainer Tomohito Ozeki said, “He saw out quarantine at Northern Farm Tenei, and all’s gone smoothly, given that he has had experience of traveling overseas before. On returning to the stable, he’s been fine with the weather getting warmer, and he’s been working well under race jockey Damian Lane.”

Kiseki - After his bold showing in the Tenno Sho (Spring), coming back in distance could be just what the 6-year-old by Rulership needs in his quest to land another Grade 1, and break the jinx that has kept him winless since the 2017 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger). “He broke well last time, which was a good thing, but it looked as if it was a bit difficult for him with the flow of the race passing the stands for the first time. He’s had a break at the farm, and returning to the stable this time, without having to have a gate test, it’s a definite plus looking ahead to the race,” said assistant trainer Takashi Kotaki. This will be Kiseki’s third run in the Takarazuka Kinen, and he’s looking to go one better than last year’s second place finish. He will once again be ridden by Yutaka Take.
Stiffelio - The resurgence in form of the 6-year-old by Stay Gold was eye-catching last time, when he almost won the Tenno Sho (Spring) at very big odds. He finished seventh in the Takarazuka Kinen last year, and with the form he’s in, he looks capable of running a bigger race this time around. Trainer Hidetaka Otonashi, who won the race in 2018 with Mikki Rocket, thinks he’s found the key to him running better. “I wasn’t sure he could stay the 3,200 meters in the Tenno Sho, but he showed he could. Since the All Comers last autumn, he hadn’t been getting good results, but from two starts ago in the Nikkei Sho, he’s settled into rhythm well in the first half of the race and it seems to have made a difference,” said the trainer.

In March 2020, Betfair Pty Limited (Australia) issued an announcement on their website that they would offer the betting exchange market on Japanese racing. JRA has confirmed that they had started covering Japanese racing from March 28th, 2020. Betfair commenced without any notice to us.

After recognizing the commencement of betting exchange on Japanese racing by Betfair, we have sent letters to Betfair twice to cease the betting exchange on Japanese racing from our perspective of maintaining the racing integrity. However, they had continued offering the markets for two months. Thanks to the cooperation and support from racing authorities and connections in Australia and some other countries, on May 28 Betfair stated on their website that they had made the decision to pull Japanese racing. Although they stated their position on betting exchange on their website, we hold a completely different view from them. We would like to clarify our position on betting exchange as follows.

We understand that betting exchange is a type of wagering introduced in the early 2000s in the UK and now this has been widespread with approval in some countries such as the UK, Ireland and Australia. The major difference from traditional betting is that you can lay a horse to lose. The JRA has consistently opposed to this type of wagering for years.

When Betfair obtained a license of betting exchange in Australia in 2006, the JRA sent a letter to express our concerns about dealing the betting exchange covering Japanese racing. At that time, the CEO of Betfair replied to us that they would not accept bet from people in Japan and have no plan and intention to offer the betting exchange market on Japanese racing.

Last September, Betfair commenced offering the betting exchange market on Hong Kong racing without any notice to The Hong Kong Jockey Club. The HKJC protested against the infringement of their intellectual property rights by Betfair and argued that betting exchange poses the fundamental threats to the integrity of racing. And also the jockeys who are licensed to ride in Hong Kong objected to being exposed to the suspicion and innuendo that will inevitably be associated with riding a beaten favorite that has been heavily laid on a betting exchange. In response to The HKJC’s protests, Betfair decided to cease betting exchange on Hong Kong racing shortly afterward. We share the same view with The HKJC in that betting exchange poses threats to the integrity of racing.

Another point that we have to remember is that from the view point of the sport of thoroughbred racing, betting exchange is not an acceptable option.

“Betting” is indeed one of the aspects related to thoroughbred horseracing all over the world. However, betting is not an absolute factor in racing, since there are some countries which prohibit betting activity on authorized horseracing under their respective national laws.

In spite of this, thoroughbred horseracing is held in many countries, because of "improvement of breed" (charms of pedigree) to test speed and stamina, show performances through "conduct of the race" (fascination of the sport) and its existence as sports entertainment to support not only the racehorses but also jockeys and all the people involved.

Further, from a viewpoint of horseracing as a sport, it is necessary to determine the summit. That is why the winner, and not the loser, should be praised. It does not mean that the losers are miserable. This is because without losers there would be no winner and no competition. Competition encourages improvement. In terms of betting, it may be possible to lay horses to lose, which is the majority, but it does not make sense from a sporting perspective.

The JRA have long promoted thoroughbred horseracing as “sports entertainment.” Gambling in Japan is illegal for the most part and special law is enacted as an exemption of the Criminal Law to allow for the operation of horseracing, based on the premises that we maintain the integrity of racing. We have been communicating our position at every major international conference of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities and Asian Racing Federation.

As such, the betting exchange platform which allows betting on the losers and profit from it not winning is totally unacceptable from the standpoint of maintaining the integrity and also from the principles of the sports that all competitors should aim to win.

As we mentioned above, the JRA strongly opposes the betting exchange and urges any betting operators Not to offer betting exchange on Japanese racing and Not to provide the service to Japanese citizens.

June 15, 2020
Masayuki Goto
President and CEO
Japan Racing Association

Four-year-old Gran Alegria ran a strong and convincing race to win this year’s Yasuda Kinen while holding off a group of dominating rivals which included not only 10 G1 winners, but the heavily favored Almond Eye, who was hoped to rewrite history in becoming the first Japanese horse to land eight G1 turf wins. The 2019 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas, G1, 1,600m) winner and Best Three-Year-Old Filly showed a good runner-up effort in her first sprint challenge, this year’s Takamatsunomiya Kinen (G1, 1,200m), but sat out her scheduled Victoria Mile start three weeks earlier when she ran a fever. For trainer Kazuo Fujisawa this marks his third Yasuda Kinen title (1997 Taiki Blizzard, 1998 Taiki Shuttle) and his 30th JRA-G1 victory following his latest in last year’s Sprinters Stakes with Tower of London. Jockey Kenichi Ikezoe, who has taken the reigns of Gran Alegria from her last start, celebrates his 26th JRA-G1 victory, his latest being the Mile Championship with Indy Champ last November.

In an empty Tokyo Racecourse, however, the determined and heated contenders broke on the backstretch with Gran Alegria settling well in hand in the middle of the field and smoothly shifting to an outer route to make her bid before the last turn. A clear path from the top of the lane made it easy for the filly to find her best stride and by the furlong pole, Gran Alegria was the sole leader, maintaining a powerful and unthreatened drive to the wire landing a convincing 2-1/2-length win.

“First of all, I must thank everyone at the stables who tuned her up so well. I was focused on keeping her in good rhythm and in a good position which all worked out beautifully. She just gave her best with such a tenacious run down the stretch—I was afraid up to the line that we were going to be caught, especially by Almond Eye. I hurt myself when a chunk of grass hit my eye at the third corner, but it doesn’t hurt at all now!” Kenichi Ikezoe commented happily.

Solid favorite Almond Eye missed her break, similar to the incident in last year’s version where she was heavily bumped after the start and ended up finishing third. The five-year-old mare then traveled in fourth to fifth from the rear on the heels of Indy Champ, displayed her trademark turn of foot in gaining on the eventual winner but had too much ground to make up while tagging Indy Champ in the final strides and secured second.

“We had a poor break but I think we recovered well and made a smooth and strong bid turning for home with Gran Alegria in aim. She showed her good turn of foot but she could have done better. The winner was just so strong, it wasn’t our day,” commented jockey Christophe Lemaire.

Last year’s champion and favored second, Indy Champ ran the rails behind Gran Alegria and in front of Almond Eye, struggled for room in early stretch, chased the winner in second from the furlong marker but was caught in the last 50 meters to finish a half-length third from the runner-up.

Other Horses:
4th: (3) Normcore—hugged rails around 12th, angled out for clear path, responded well, 2nd fastest over last 3 furlongs but neck short for 3rd
5th: (8) Keiai Nautique—raced around 12th, circled wide, passed tired rivals
6th: (9) Admire Mars—tracked leaders around 3rd, checked 300m out, showed brief effort until 100m out
7th: (2) Danon Kingly—saved ground around 6th, angled out for stretch run, checked 300m out, even paced
8th: (14) Danon Smash—set pace, surrendered lead before 200m pole, showed tenacity but weakened in last 100m
9th: (7) Persian Knight—settled 3-wide around 9th near favorite, lacked needed kick at stretch
10th: (13) Vin de Garde—traveled around 6th, checked at 4th corner, showed little at stretch
11th: (10) Mr Melody—stalked leader in 2nd, ran gamely until 200m out, fell back due to early effort
12th: (12) Seiun Kosei—sat 3-wide around 3rd from wide draw, outrun after turning 4th corner
13th: (1) Danon Premium—took economic trip around 3rd, never fired and faded after 200m marker
14th: (4) Kluger—broke poorly, trailed in rear, unable to reach contention

Tokyo Racecourse wraps up five straight weeks of top-level action this Sunday, June 7 with the Yasuda Kinen, a Grade 1 mile event over turf boasting a purse of nearly JPY282 million and a winner’s prize of 130 million.

Along with the Grade 1 Mile Championship in the fall, the Yasuda Kinen weighs heavy in determining Japan’s top miler of the year. Open to both sexes 3-year-olds and up, the race is sure to draw the best and this year is no exception, even with measures still in effect to combat the spread of COVID-19. It’s a brilliant lineup that will, if all nominees run, feature a record eleven Grade 1 champions, with both sprint and mile aces in the mix.

Seventeen horses (one shy of a full gate), ranging in age from 4 to 8 and including three females, have been nominated for the 70th running of the Yasuda. The hands-down headliner is the seven-time Grade 1 champion mare Almond Eye, just off a win of the Victoria Mile over the same course. Indy Champ, who captured both the Yasuda and the Mile Championship last year, is back, and taking on his first Yasuda Kinen is mile specialist Admire Mars, with three top-level victories over the distance, including the Hong Kong Mile at Sha Tin Racecourse last December.

Last year, Indy Champ set the current race record of 1 minute 30.9 seconds. Normcore holds the course record with her time of 1 minute 30.5 seconds set last year in the Victoria Mile. The weights for the Yasuda Kinen are set, with males carrying 58 kg, females 56 kg.

The draw for the Yasuda Kinen will be announced on Friday. The race is the 11th on the Sunday card of 12 at Tokyo. Post time is 15:40.

Here’s a more in-depth look at the expected popular picks:

Almond Eye – Japan’s stupendous mare Almond Eye, is winner of six Grade 1s in Japan. Just like her sprint champion sire Lord Kanaloa is already an international success, she has one Grade 1 win notched in March 2019 in Dubai. Chances are good her wins abroad would have numbered more if luck had been on her side. After winning the Tenno Sho (Autumn) last year, Almond Eye was headed for Hong Kong, but her trip was cancelled when she briefly ran a temperature. After a poor showing in the Grade 1 Arima Kinen (The Grand Prix), then was again aimed at Dubai. But, after arriving for the March 28 Dubai World Cup Day, the global pandemic led to the cancellation of races. Her successful bid in the Victoria Mile on May 17 has been her only race this year. Almond Eye has notched five wins out of six outings at Tokyo, the only blemish being last year’s Yasuda, when interference at the start likely took a toll. Unlike last year, when Almond Eye had three months between her winning run in Dubai and the Yasuda, this year she has but three weeks. If she can capture the Yasuda Kinen, Almond Eye will become, after Vodka, only the second female to win seven JRA Grade 1s. The jockey Christophe Lemaire is gunning for his fourth Grade 1 victory this year.

Indy Champ – Mile specialist and two-time G1 winner Indy Champ, a 5-year-old by Stay Gold, aced both the Yasuda Kinen and the Mile Championship last year, before finishing seventh in the Hong Kong Mile. With eight wins in 15 starts, Indy Champ has had two starts this year since returning from Hong Kong and won the Yomiuri Milers Cup at Kyoto on April 26, the same prep he had last year for the Yasuda (last year he ran fourth in the prep). He and Almond Eye will meet again for the second time. It’ll be interesting to see, if both get a smooth trip home, where they stand at the finish line. Yuichi Fukunaga, just off his second Derby win, is expected in the saddle.

Danon Kingly– A 4-year-old colt by Deep Impact, Danon Kingly has never missed the board and has had only one finish out of the top in his nine outings thus far. He aced his debut at Tokyo and his next start, both over the mile, but afterward all but one of his next seven races (including a third in the Satsuki Sho and a second in the Japanese Derby) were in the 1,800-2,400 meters range. The one that wasn’t was the Mile Championship last year, in which he finished fifth 0.4 seconds off winner Indy Champ. He has notched nine-furlong races such as the Grade 3 Kyodo News Hai (Tokinominoru Kinen) and the Grade 2 Mainichi Okan at Tokyo, and the Tokyo mile also should be well within his ability. In addition, Keita Tosaki, who had been the colt’s regular rider until an accident took him out of action shortly before the Mile Championship, returned to work on May 23 and is expected back with his old partner for the Yasuda.

Admire Mars – The 4-year-old Admire Mars, by Daiwa Major, has won three top-level races over the mile and is making a bid for the Yasuda Kinen for his first time. He has, however, not raced in six months, not since his win at Sha Tin in the Hong Kong Mile on Dec. 8. The last time he ran without a prep was over the Tokyo mile in the Fuji Stakes prior to his Hong Kong trip and, as race favorite, disappointed in ninth place 0.7 seconds off the winner. However, this year the plan was to race at Meydan on March 28 and Admire Mars was among the 20 Japan-based horses that had already arrived in Dubai only to have their races cancelled. He is looking fit in track work and the time off is not expected to have serious repercussions. Yuga Kawada, currently neck and neck with Christophe Lemaire for the top spot in the jockey rankings, is expected to be up for the first time.

Danon Premium– The 5-year-old Deep Impact-sired Danon Premium swept the first four races of his career including the Grade 1 Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes before being handed his first loss in the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby). He missed the top 3 only once in his six starts thereafter, and though he has taken on four more top-level events since, is still chasing his second Grade 1 victory. He is back on home turf for the first time since the Mile Championship last November and is returning from a third-place finish over sloppy ground in the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Royal Randwick on April 11. Last year, after interference at the break, Danon Premium finished last of 16 runners in the Yasuda Kinen, a result that did not reflect his ability. This he proved nearly five months later by running second in both the Grade 1 2,000-meter Tenno Sho (Autumn) at Tokyo and the Mile Championship in November. Damian Lane is expected to be his new partner on Sunday.

Normcore – A 5-year-old daughter of Harbinger, Normcore captured the 2019 Victoria Mile in record time, and this year finished third four lengths behind the winner Almond Eye, but was only shy of second by a neck. She ran fourth to Admire Mars in the Hong Kong Mile last December and, like Almond Eye, is back over the Tokyo mile with only three weeks between races. Her record of winning two graded stakes over the mile at Tokyo indicates the venue is to her liking.

Gran Alegria-- Last year’s Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) champion and runnerup this year in the Takamatsunomiya Kinen at March end, Gran Alegria has only finished out of the top three in one of her seven starts thus far. She has four wins, three of them at the mile. Two of those, her debut in June 2018 and the Grade 3 Saudi Arabia Royal Cup that October, were at Tokyo. She returns after just over two months and her only start this year (a second in the Takamatsunomiya Kinen) to take on her first mile in over a year.

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Others not to be overlooked:
Danon Smash went wire to wire in the Grade 2 Keio Hai Spring Cup on May 16 and the mile could be in reach if the trip suits. The odds are likely to be long on Keiai Nautique, who is 11-4-6 in his three starts this year, all at graded-stakes level and two over the mile. Last out over the Tokyo 1,400 meters, the extra furlong could help him.