Arima Kinen (Group 1)

THE three-year-old colt Equinox ended the season on the highest note as he claimed this year’s Arima Kinen in impressive style at Nakayama Racecourse on Christmas Day.

Sired by 2017 Arima Kinen winner Kitasan Black, the dark brown colt had finished second in both the Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) and Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) after winning his two juvenile starts.

The 12-and-a-half-furlong Arima Kinen was only the sixth career outing for the colt who came off a victory in the Tenno Sho (Autumn).

Trainer Tetsuya Kimura captured his fourth JRA-Group 1 victory following his Tenno Sho (Autumn) title with this colt and jockey Christophe Lemaire marked his 43rd JRA-Group 1 win and third Arima Kinen success following wins with Heart’s Cry (2005) and Satono Diamond (2016).

From the start, Titleholder set the pace while race favourite Equinox eased back to around ninth. The eventual winner travelled wide and made headway on the outside on the final bend. Once taking the lead entering the straight, he responded well to the jockey’s urging with a strong burst of speed and easily held off the rest of the field with a two and a half-length winning margin.

“I won the Arima Kinen with Heart’s Cry and Satono Diamond, both on Christmas Day, and I’m really happy to be able to win the race on Christmas Day again,” Lemaire told Japanese media.

“We were able to make a good start and the horse was keen to go so I held him and responded strongly when I brought him to the outside. Though he was not mature yet during his spring campaign, he became really strong and I look forward to his performance next year,” he added.

The other horse to note was sixth betting choice Boldog Hos. Slow out of the gate, he settled second from last by the rails but angled out and accelerated rapidly doming to the final bends.

Impressive kick

The Screen Hero colt entered the straight behind the race favourite and, though unable to threaten the leader, showed an impressive kick, timed as the fastest last three furlongs in the race, to finish second, a length and a half in front of Geraldina.

Third choice Geraldina, coming off her victory in the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup last month, broke poorly and sat third last. The Maurice filly launched her late kick and closed in on Equinox and Boldog Hos but had too much to make up to finish third.

Efforia rallied for lead briefly, unable to keep up with top finisher to finish fifth, with the Japan up winner, Vela Azul, only 10th.

Hopeful Stakes (Group 1)

THE final Group 1 of the Japanese season was the Hopeful Stakes at Nakayama on Wednesday, and the race provided a notable occasion for German-based rider Bauyrzhan Murzabayev.

The Kazakhstan-born rider has been Germany’s champion jockey for the past three years and was winning for the first time at the top level in Japan.

The winner, Dura Erede, a son of Duramente owned by Three H Racing Co. Ltd, was a 90/1 outsider and caught Top Knife, who looked all over the winner in the home straight, in the last stride to win the feature for two-year-old colts and fillies over a mile and a quarter on the turf.

Murzabayev said: “I was happy when I won a Group 1 for the first time in Germany, but I am very happy to win a Group 1 for the first time in Japan. I didn’t know if we had won or not.

“I had the impression that he was a good horse from the time I got on him in training.”

David Egan finished 10th of the 18 runners on J Palms, with the favourite, Mikki Cappuccino, finishing fifth, two lengths behind the winner.