Welcome back to our annual series of newsletters leading up to the 2021 Japan Cup (G1, 2,400m). The fall racing season is heading towards the Japan Autumn International Series, which will be held over a period of four weekends between November 14 and December 5 and which comprises four prestigious G1 races: the Queen Elizabeth II Cup (G1, 2,200m), Mile Championship (G1, 1,600m), Japan Cup, and Champions Cup (G1, dirt, 1,800m). Total prize money for the four G1 events will amount to ¥1.37 billion (US$13 million), with additional bonuses for winners of designated overseas G1 events who also finish within the top three in any of the four races. Also, winners of designated overseas races who finish outside the top three places in the Japan Cup will still be guaranteed an incentive of US$200,000.
Features in the Tenno Sho (Autumn), Japan Cup, and Arima Kinen
In its 40th anniversary last year, the Japan Cup attracted world-wide attention, becoming the highlight of the season despite only one contender participating from abroad. The incredible card featured superstar mare Almond Eye (JPN, by Lord Kanaloa), who lived up to all expectations and romped to her ninth G1 triumph while beating the colt and fillies’ Triple Crown champions of the season, Contrail (JPN, C4, by Deep Impact) and Daring Tact (JPN, F4, by Epiphaneia), both with undefeated records. The queen had no problem in taking the lead at half-stretch from sitting in fourth and held off the fast-closing Contrail and Daring Tact to prevail by a 1-1/4-length margin, capping off an extraordinary racing career that will go down in history. Behind the two three-year-old stars was Curren Bouquetd’or (JPN, M5, by Deep Impact), who beat Glory Vase (JPN, H6, by Deep Impact) by a neck in a close battle for fourth. It is somewhat of a surprise that none of the four who finished closest to Almond Eye that day has registered a win since.
Contrail kicked off the season in the Osaka Hai (G1, 2,000m) in April but succumbed to the heavy rain that afternoon and failed to display his good closing kick from behind and finished third. Struggling to recover from the effort, it was decided that he sit out the initially planned Takarazuka Kinen (G1, 2,200m) start in June. His connections have announced that his come-back start this autumn will be in the Tenno Sho (Autumn) (G1, 2,000m) and that the Japan Cup and/or Arima Kinen (G1, 2,500m) on December 26 will most likely be his next destination.
Daring Tact commenced the season in the Kinko Sho (G2, 2,000m) in March but failed to catch the longest shot of the ten-horse field and gate-to-wire winner, Gibeon (JPN, H6, by Deep Impact), and was a neck short in second place. The Epiphaneia filly ran in Hong Kong’s Queen Elizabeth II Cup (G1, 2,000m) next and after making an early bid from a good striking position, she was caught by fellow Japanese foes Loves Only You (JPN, M5, by Deep Impact) and Glory Vase near the wire, finishing third. After returning from her first overseas challenge, the filly was diagnosed with ligamentitis in her right foreleg and is now focused on a swift recovery.
Curren Bouquetd’or was the only Japan Cup finisher in the top five to run in the year-end Arima Kinen four weeks later, where she tied with World Premiere (JPN, H5, by Deep Impact) in fifth. This season, the five-year-old mare, winless since May 2019, has shown consistent performances in the three races she has run so far. She dug in strongly in a runner-up effort in the Nikkei Sho (G2, 2,500m) in March, held on well to finish third in the Tenno Sho (Spring) (G1, 3,200m) in May, and marked a fourth in the Takarazuka Kinen. She will attempt to score her first graded win in her autumn campaign, which will begin in the Tenno Sho (Autumn).
Glory Vase raced twice in this year’s spring season, first in the Kinko Sho, where the race development and turf condition worked against him to put him in fourth place. In his next Queen Elizabeth II Cup start in Hong Kong, the six-year-old dug in gamely from behind and secured a 3/4- length second. The 2019 Hong Kong Vase (G1, 2,400m) victor commenced his autumn campaign in the All Comers (G2, 2,200m) on September 26, where he remained a factor up to the final half-furlong and was third to cross the wire. He will most likely make a second Japan Cup bid or else embark on a third overseas campaign to challenge the Hong Kong International Races in December.
Among the 6th-9th place Japan Cup finishers, Mikki Swallow (JPN, by Tosen Homareboshi; 7th) was sent to stud, while World Premiere (6th), for whom the Japan Cup was actually a comeback race from an 11-month lay-off, finished three lengths behind Glory Vase in sixth and has shown improvement in form since. He was tied in fifth with Curren Bouquetd’or in the following Arima Kinen and then kicked off the present season with a good third in the Nikkei Sho. In the Tenno Sho (Spring), his main target of the first half of the year, the five-year-old burst out in the straight with perfect timing from traveling in seventh and put away Deep Bond (JPN, C4, by Kizuna), this year’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe candidate, by a 3/4 length in claiming his much awaited second G1 title since winning the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger, G1, 3,000m) in 2019. World Premiere is scheduled to be at the gate of the Tenno Sho (Autumn), and then, depending on how he fares, will either be pointed towards the Japan Cup or the Hong Kong International Races.
Kiseki (JPN, H7, by Rulership; 8th) raced four times since his Japan Cup endeavor. Although the son of Rulership was beaten to 12th in the following Arima Kinen, he has been rather consistent this year, marking a fifth, fourth, and fifth in the Kinko Sho, Queen Elizabeth II Cup, and Takarazuka Kinen. The 2017 Kikuka Sho champion will return from a well-rested summer break and run in the Kyoto Daishoten (G2, 2,400m) on October 10 ahead of another couple of challenges that may include a shot at the Hong Kong International Races. Makahiki (JPN, H8, by Deep Impact; 9th) made only one appearance this season, at the Tenno Sho (Spring), placing eighth. The 2016 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby, G1, 2,400m) champion will commence his fall campaign in the Kyoto Daishoten as well.
Those who finished 12th to 15th in last year’s Japan Cup: You Can Smile (JPN, H6, by King Kamehameha; 12th) started the season with a promising runner-up effort in the Hanshin Daishoten (G2, 3,000m) but came seventh and sixth in his next two starts; Crescendo Love (JPN, H7, by Stay Gold; 13th) strived to defend his Tanabata Sho (G3, 2,000m) title in July but was heavily defeated at 14th; Taurus Gemini (JPN, H5, by King’s Best; 14th) won a head-to-head duel in claiming his first graded title, the Tanabata Sho, but dropped away disappointingly in the Sapporo Kinen (G2, 2,000m) and finished 10th; and Yoshio (JPN, H8, by Johannesburg; 15th) marked a fourth, his seasonal best among five starts so far.
Horses unraced in the Japan Cup last year and pointed towards the Tenno Sho (Autumn), Japan Cup or Arima Kinen this season will include 2020 Best Sprinter or Miler Gran Alegria (JPN, M5, by Deep Impact). The five-time G1 winner of races ranging from 1,200 to 1,600 meters made her 2,000-meter race debut this year in the Osaka Hai, where she came fourth. She hopes to better her performance at the same distance in the Tenno Sho (Autumn). It remains to be seen whether she will aim for a back-to-back Mile Championship (G1, 1,600m) title on November 21 or head for another challenge.
Danon Kingly (JPN, H5, by Deep Impact) ran strongly in the Yasuda Kinen (G1, 1,600m) in June as eighth favorite and held off fast-closing defending champion Gran Alegria by a head to claim his first G1 victory. The five-year-old will start in the Mainichi Okan (G2, 1,800m) on October 10 before targeting the Tenno Sho (Autumn).
Unicorn Lion (IRE, H5, by No Nay Never) has shown promising results in the first half of the season, landing his first graded victory in the Naruo Kinen (G3, 2,000m) in June and running tenaciously against this year’s Arc entrant Chrono Genesis (JPN, M5, by Bago) in a runner-up effort in the Takarazuka Kinen. The five-year-old was looking to notch up his first G1 win after his fall kick-off start, the Kyoto Daishoten, but was found to be suffering from an infection—seedy toe—in his hoof in late September, and his connections were forced to abandon his fall plan.
Hishi Iguazu (JPN, H5, by Heart’s Cry) stretched his winning streak to four with his Nakayama Kinen (G2, 1,800m) victory in February and has been given a lengthy rest since. The Heart’s Cry horse will return this fall in his first G1 challenge, the Tenno Sho (Autumn).
Among the remarkable three-year-olds, eyes are on Efforia (JPN, C3, by Epiphaneia), who will pass up the Kikuka Sho, the last leg of the three-year-old Triple Crown, and test his strength against older horses instead. The Epiphaneia colt swept three consecutive races from his debut, which included a G3 title, and went on to demonstrate an impressive performance, bursting out at the last turn from a good inner position to easily claim the Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas, G1, 2,000m) by a convincing three-length margin in April. In the following Tokyo Yushun, he made his bid with perfect timing but was caught at the wire by Shahryar (JPN, C3, by Deep Impact) and came second by a nose. Efforia’s connections have decided to send him to the Tenno Sho (Autumn) and then most likely the year-end Arima Kinen.
Derby victor Shahryar broke his maiden in his debut start, marked a third behind winner Efforia in the Kyodo News Hai (G3, 1,800m), and then landed his first graded win in the Mainichi Hai (G3, 1,800m) that followed. Well rested and in good form after sitting out the Satsuki Sho, the Deep Impact colt showed a tremendous closing kick in beating Efforia by a whisker in the Tokyo Yushun. He commenced his fall campaign in the Kobe Shimbun Hai (G2, 2,200m) on September 26, where the colt had little left in the last half-furlong from struggling on the rain-sodden track and finished fourth, five lengths behind the winner.
Sprint, Older Fillies & Mares, Mile, Dirt, and Steeplechasing
The opening G1 event of the 2021 JRA fall season, the Sprinters Stakes (1,200m) will be held on October 3 without Gran Alegria, who won the title last year but opted to aim for the Tenno Sho (Autumn) instead this year, leaving Danon Smash (JPN, H6, by Lord Kanaloa) as a probable favorite. The son of Lord Kanaloa won back-to-back G1 titles in the 2020 Hong Kong Sprint (1,200m) and Takamatsunomiya Kinen (1,200m) in March but was unsuccessful in his bid for a third straight title in the following Chairman’s Sprint Prize (G1, 1,200m), finishing sixth. He will kick off this fall in his attempt for his third G1 victory in the Sprinters Stakes before returning to Hong Kong again in December to defend his title in the Hong Kong Sprint.
Resistencia (JPN, F4, by Daiwa Major), who just missed by a neck in second to Danon Smash in the Takamatsunomiya Kinen, disappointingly finished sixth in her following start in the Victoria Mile (G1, 1,600m). She bounced back to score her fourth grade-race victory in her fall comeback at the Centaur Stakes (G2, 1,200m) on September 12, and is in good form towards claiming her second G1 victory after the 2019 Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (1,600m). Meanwhile, 2020 NHK Mile Cup (G1, 1,600m) winner Lauda Sion (JPN, C4, by Real Impact) was inconsistent this season, finishing 14th in both the Takamatsunomiya Kinen and the Yasuda Kinen and a disappointing 13th again in the Centaur Stakes, although he managed to add another grade-race victory in May in the Keio Hai Spring Cup (G2, 1,400m). The Real Impact colt will be stepping down in class this fall, running in the Fuji Stakes (G2, 1,600m) on October 23 instead of the Sprinters Stakes.
Other key runners in the fall sprint G1 will include Bien Fait (JPN, G4, by Kizuna), winner of the Hakodate Sprint Stakes (G3, 1,200m) on June 13; First Force (JPN, H5, by Lord Kanaloa), a record-breaking winner of the CBC Sho (G3, 1,200m) on July 4; and 2020 Takamatsunomiya Kinen victor Mozu Superflare (USA, M6, by Speightstown).
This year’s Queen Elizabeth II Cup for three-year-old and up fillies/mares will not include 2019-20 champion Lucky Lilac (JPN, by Orfevre), who is now retired. Loves Only You (JPN, M5, by Deep Impact), who was third to Lucky Lilac in both years, will also be away for her overseas challenge in the Breeders’ Cup, so all eyes are on Lei Papale (JPN, F4, by Deep Impact), who was unbeaten in six starts since her debut.
The Deep Impact filly was defeated for the first time in the following Takarazuka Kinen (G1, 2,200m), while still managing to secure a place at third, and missed the board for the first time in fourth place when sent to the post as race favorite in her fall debut at the All Comers on September 26, in which Win Marilyn (JPN, F4, by Screen Hero) claimed her third grade-race title. Victoria Mile runner-up Rambling Alley (JPN, M5, by Deep Impact), also slated to enter the Queen Elizabeth II Cup, finished further back in seventh.
This year’s Victoria Mile third-place finisher Magic Castle (JPN, F4, by Deep Impact) and the Hanshin Himba Stakes (G2, 1,600m) victor Des Ailes (JPN, F4, by Deep Impact) will also be running in the Queen Elizabeth II Cup following their start in the Fuchu Himba Stakes (G2, 1,800m) on October 16, which is the main prep for this race. Furthermore, the three-year-old filly hopefuls will challenge their seniors coming off their outing in the Shuka Sho (G1, 2,000m), the final leg of the fillies’ Triple Crown, on October 17.
The Mile Championship on November 21 will include the 2019 winner of this race, Indy Champ (JPN, H6, by Stay Gold). The consistent son of Stay Gold will be coming off a five-month break following a fourth-place finish in the Yasuda Kinen, which follows the same race plan of last year in which he finished second in the Mile Championship after a third in the Yasuda.
This year’s NHK Mile Cup champion Schnell Meister (GER, C3, by Kingman), who finished an impressive third against his seniors in the Yasuda Kinen, will make his fall comeback in the Mainichi Okan and could be one of the three-year-olds to threaten older G1 caliber in the Mile Championship, joining Danon the Kid (JPN, C3, by Just a Way), who is already slated to run this year. The Just a Way colt, who won his first G1 title as a two-year-old in the Hopeful Stakes (G1, 2,000m), was the race favorite in the first leg of the three-year-old Triple Crown, the Satsuki Sho, but finished 15th and later was found to have sustained a chip fracture in his right radial tuberosity and sidelined for an extended period. Although recognized for his outstanding performance at 2,000 meters, Danon the Kid will resume racing this fall starting with a distance of 1,600 meters in the Fuji Stakes, which will also include NHK Mile Cup runner-up Songline (JPN, F3, by Kizuna) as well as Sekiya Kinen (G3, 1,600m) victor Lotus Land (USA, F4, by Point of Entry). He will then go on to the Mile Championship.
Another talented three-year-old colt and 2020 Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes victor Grenadier Guards (JPN, C3, by Frankel) registered a third behind Schnell Meister and Songline in the NHK Mile Cup, and after a summer break, also finished third in the Keisei Hai Autumn Handicap (G3, 1,600m) on September 12. He will head directly to the Mile Championship, instead of the original plan to challenge the Breeders’ Cup Mile in the US.
Cadence Call (JPN, H5, by Lord Kanaloa), three-time grade-race winner at a mile, will kick off his fall campaign with the Mainichi Okan (G2, 1,800m) on October 10 before heading for the Mile Championship. Other possible runners in the mile G1 event include Catedral (JPN, H5, by Heart’s Cry), victor of the Keisei Hai Autumn Handicap; Salios (JPN, C4, by Heart’s Cry), 2019 Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes (G1, 1,600m) winner; and those from the Sprinters Stakes such as Resistencia, as well as starters in the Tenno Sho (Autumn) such as Gran Alegria and Danon Kingly.
2020 Best Dirt Horse and Champions Cup victor Chuwa Wizard (JPN, H6, by King Kamehameha) continued to impress in his second start this season, finishing second in the Dubai World Cup (G1, dirt, 2,000m) in March. However, he sustained a proximal phalanx fracture in his right foreleg after finishing sixth in his following start in June, the Teio Sho (dirt, 2,000m)—his return to racing is still undetermined.
Meanwhile, Chrysoberyl (JPN, H5, by Gold Allure), the 2019 Champion Cup winner and fourth-place horse last year, also sustained an injury to his annular ligament in his right hind leg late last year but made his comeback start on September 29 in the Nippon TV Hai (dirt, 1,800m) , where he was outrun after racing in second position early and finished sixth.
Cafe Pharoah (USA, C4, by American Pharoah), sixth last year in the Champions Cup, marked his first G1 victory this year in the February Stakes (G1, dirt, 1,600m) but finished fifth in the following Kashiwa Kinen (dirt, 1,600m) in May, then made an unsuccessful test on turf in the Hakodate Kinen (G3, 2,000m) in July where he finished ninth. Hopefully he will bounce back in his fall campaign in preparation for the Champions Cup on December 5.
2019 February Stakes champion Inti (JPN, H7, by Came Home), who was third in both his 2019 and 2020 Champions Cup starts, will make his fall comeback in the Mile Championship Nambu Hai (dirt, 1,600m) on October 11, as will Air Spinel (JPN, H8, by King Kamehameha), second to Cafe Pharoah by a 3/4 length in this year’s February Stakes, and Wide Pharaoh (JPN, H5, by Henny Hughes), victor of 2020’s Kashiwa Kinen.
2018-20 Tokyo Daishoten (G1, dirt, 2,000m) victor Omega Perfume (JPN, H6, by Swept Overboard), four-time grade-race winner Clincher (JPN, H7, by Deep Sky), and this year’s Teio Sho champion T O Keynes (JPN, C4, by Sinister Minister) will commence their fall campaign in the JBC Classic (dirt, 2,100m) on November 3.
The Nakayama Daishogai (J-G1, 4,100m), held on December 25, is the second of two steeplechase events graded at J-G1 to determine the season’s best jumper, and Meisho Dassai (JPN, H8, by Suzuka Mambo), already with one J-G1 victory in the Nakayama Grand Jump (J-G1, 4,250m) in April, is expected to win his second consecutive JRA Award as the season’s Best Steeplechase Horse by defending the Nakayama Daishogai title, won last year. The son of Suzuka Mambo will kick off this fall with the Kyoto Jump Stakes (J-G3, 3,140m) on November 13.
Legendary jumper Oju Chosan (JPN, H10, by Stay Gold) was trying for his sixth consecutive triumph in this year’s Nakayama Grand Jump but was diagnosed with a proximal phalanx fracture to his left foreleg after finishing fifth. The son of Stay Gold is due to make his comeback start on October 17 in the Tokyo High-Jump (J-G2, 3,110m) before heading for the Nakayama Daishogai.
Towards the final legs of the three-year-old Triple Crown
One of the three-year-old fillies who is the focus of attention this year is Sodashi (JPN, F3, by Kurofune), possibly the first white filly to win a G1 in the world. Undefeated in four starts as a two-year-old, including the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (G1, 1,600m) that earned her the JRA Award Best Two-Year-Old Filly title last year, she captured her second G1 title in the Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas, G1, 1,600m) in April this year while setting a course record time. Though experiencing her first defeat, finishing eighth in the Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks, G1, 2,400m) in May due to the long distance, the Kurofune filly won the Sapporo Kinen (G2, 2,000m) on August 22 after a three-month break, defeating three older G1 horses. The filly aims to capture her third G1 title in the last leg of the fillies’ Triple Crown, the Shuka Sho (G1, 2,000m), on October 17.
Satono Reinas (JPN, F3, by Deep Impact), who finished a nose and a neck second to Sodashi in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies and the Oka Sho, respectively, attracted attention as the first filly in seven years to run in the Tokyo Yushun and finished fifth against male contenders. Though she was slated to start her autumn season in the Shuka Sho together with stablemate and Yushun Himba runner-up Akaitorino Musume (JPN, F3, by Deep Impact), Satono Reinas was found to have sustained a bone fracture in her right hind leg, ruling her out of racing for at least half a year. Meanwhile, Yushun Himba winner Uberleben (JPN, F3, by Gold Ship) was diagnosed with a minor tendon injury after the race, and although it took some time for her to return to training, she will start in the Shuka Sho if she can recover her form in time.
The Shion Stakes (G3, 2,000m) on September 11, one of the trial races towards the Shuka Sho, was claimed by Oka Sho third-place finisher Fine Rouge (JPN, F3, by Kizuna), who captured her second graded title following the Fairy Stakes (G3, 1,600m) in January. Through Seven Seas (JPN, F3, by Dream Journey) and Miss Figaro (JPN, F3, by Deep Impact) came in second and third, respectively, to earn berths in the Shuka Sho, while Japanese Oaks third-place finisher Hagino Pilina (JPN, F3, by Kizuna) finished eighth.
Fourth pick Andvaranaut (JPN, F3, by King Kamehameha) won the Rose Stakes, another trial race held on September 19, followed by 12th choice A Shin Hiten (JPN, F3, by A Shin Hikari), finishing 1-1/4 lengths behind in second. Race favorite Art de Vivre (JPN, F3, by King Kamehameha), who was fifth in both the Oka Sho and the Yushun Himba, finished another half a length behind in third, while third choice Cool Cat (JPN, F3, by Screen Hero), Flora Stakes (G2, 2,000m) champion, was 11th, and Yushun Himba fourth-place finisher Tagano Passion (JPN, F3, by King Kamehameha) came in 12th.
As mentioned earlier, Satsuki Sho winner Efforia will pass the last leg of the three-year-old Triple Crown, the Kikuka Sho, on October 24 and head for the Tenno Sho (Autumn).
The following trial races were held ahead of the Kikuka Sho. The St. Lite Kinen (G2, 2,200m) on September 20 was won by ninth pick Asamano Itazura (JPN, C3, by Victoire Pisa), who registered his first graded title with a neck victory. Orthoclase (JPN, C3, by Epiphaneia), who was coming off a second in the year-end Hopeful Stakes, was third, while Spring Stakes (G2, 1,800m) victor Victipharus (JPN, C3, by Heart’s Cry) and Keisei Hai (G3, 2,000m) winner Gratias (JPN, C3, by Heart's Cry) finished fifth and ninth, respectively.
This year’s Satsuki Sho runner-up Titleholder (JPN, C3, by Duramente) dropped back to 13th after meeting traffic entering the lane. So Valiant (JPN, C3, by Orfevre), runner-up, is expected to pass on the Kikuka Sho due to his slow recovery.
Stella Veloce (JPN, C3, by Bago), who was third in both the Satsuki Sho and the Tokyo Yushun, won the Kobe Shimbun Hai held on September 26, followed by Kyoto Shimbun Hai (G2, 2,200m) champion Red Genesis (JPN, C3, by Deep Impact), finishing half a length behind in second, and eighth pick Monte Dio (JPN, C3, by Just a Way) another three lengths behind in third. Two-time grade-race winner Wonderful Town (JPN, C3, by Rulership) was eighth.
This year’s Kikuka Sho field will also include Weiss Meteor (JPN, C3, by King Kamehameha), who won the Radio Nikkei Sho (G3, 1,800m) in July.
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