ONE week on from the fillies’ equivalent, it was the turn of the colts to assemble at Nakayama racecourse to compete in the 76th renewal of the Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas). Unlike its European counterpart it is run over the longer distance of 10 furlongs.

The 2005 winner and subsequent Triple Crown victor, Deep Impact, was represented by six of his sons bidding to emulate their legendary sire and provide him with his 23rd individual Group 1 winner.

On paper, the sextet was led by the unbeaten duo of Makahiki and Satano Diamond, both of whom produced imperious victories on their seasonal reappearances.

But it was the unheralded Dee Majesty, eighth in the betting and fifth choice of Deep Impact’s contingent, who was to show his 17 rivals a clean pair of heels to win in emphatic fashion at odds of 30/1.

Drawn widest in stall 18, the Yoshitaka Ninomiya-trained colt was forced to check early on and bide his time towards the back of the field as Respect Earth took the field along at a fierce gallop.

As the field entered the final turn, Dee Majesty in the hands of Masayoshi Ebina, was still poised at the rear but travelling easily as he began to make a forward move with Makahiki in his slip-stream.

Once straightening off the home bend, the lightly-raced bay’s reaction was immediate, surging past the field to hit the line in a new race record time with a length and a quarter to spare. Makahiki, who had no answer to the winner’s turn of foot chased him past the post with Satano Diamond a further length and a quarter back in third.

The 2015 champion two-year-old colt Leontes finished fourth. However, after a stewards’ inquiry it was deemed that sufficient interference had occurred between himself and fifth placed Air Spinal to justify reversing the placings. The stewards also handed out a nine-day ban to Leontes’ jockey, current leader in the jockey’s championship Mirco Demuro.