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Result of the 61st Yasuda Kinen (G1) - The Final Leg of Asian Mile Challenge -

Ninth favorite and Noriyuki Hori-trained Real Impact upset heavily-favored star filly Apapane to win the Yasuda Kinen this year while becoming the first three-year-old to capture the title and celebrate his first grade race victory with a G1 win in his sixth career start. A neck behind was Strong Return who crossed the wire in second in his first G1 outing, giving trainer Noriyuki Hori a one-two finish, while last year's third-place finisher Smile Jack once again in third another half length from that. Giving the race a distinctly international flavor, Beauty Flash and Thumbs Up from Hong Kong finished ninth and 11th respectively.

After the field got underway, jockey Keita Tosaki carefully camped Real Impact right behind Silport who immediately sprinted to the front, while Jo Cappuccino was hustled up near the leaders from the outside. Clever Tosho was steadied in fourth to fifth on the rail as Strong Return saved ground in mid-pack with Smile Jack traveling a length behind that on his outside down the back stretch. As the field headed for the final turn, Silport capitalized on his lead to two lengths as Jo Cappuccino moved up to press the pace in second, while Real Impact trailed another two lengths from that. Clever Tosho sat in striking position a half length from Real Impact on the rail as Strong Return and Smile Jack cruised near the back of the field.

Silport maintained his early advantage turning for home but Jo Cappuccino and Real Impact closed in quickly going the uphill stretch to make it a three-horse-battle. Real Impact finally shook loose from the two before the furlong pole and held off the late chargers to post his win. Strong Return made most of his ground-saving trip and showed a good drive to close a neck behind in second while Smile Jack, who entered the lane near the rear and was forced to thread his way to the outside after encountering traffic in upper-stretch, demonstrated an impressive turn of foot to secure third. Clever Tosho was a neck to that in fourth after finally finding room to make his bid in the last half-furlong with Jo Cappuccino finishing a nose behind in fifth. Aiming for her sixth G1 victory, Apapane showed a good but late drive down the lane despite being forced to drop back slightly to get out of a pocket in upper-stretch after traveling in upper-mid-division to finish sixth.

In his second challenge in the Yasuda Kinen, Beauty Flash broke sharply but was squeezed between rivals behind the leaders and was unable to move further up in position, finishing 9th. His trainer Anthony Cruz only stated "No excuse" after the race.
Held back around third from last in the early stages, Thumbs Up was driven forward towards the last turn but despite being forced to travel wide, he ran gamely to clear the wire in 11th. Trainer Caspar Fownes commented "I would have liked to see him further up in position but Brett told me that the pace was so fast…then he was bumped at the stretch and forced wide. He ran a good race considering".

Other Horses:
7th (10): Ridill- saved ground, met traffic while continuing to make bid along the rails
8th (2): Silport- sprinted clear to set pace, outrun before final furlong
10th (13): Danon Yoyo- second from last to final turn, circled wide for impressive but belated charge
12th (17): A Shin Forward- traveled last, launched mild rally at stretch but failed to reach contention
13th (5): San Carlo- never a factor
14th (7): Silk Earnest- showed little
15th (15): B B Guldan- angled out from traveling mid-pack, lacked needed kick
16th (11): Cosmo Sensor- alongside Apapane most of the way, no response at stretch
17th (18): Reach the Crown- near leaders early stages, faded soon after last turn
18th (12): Live Concert- circled wide from mid-division, failed to threaten

Post race interview of winning connections

Trainer: Noriyuki Hori
It was overwhelming to see both my runners became the first two runners to hit the wire. As for Real Impact, to be honest, I wasn't exactly too sure whether the three-year-old colt was up to face competition at this level. Perhaps the advantage of carrying less weight and being still fresh coming off only two starts this season have helped, in addition to his potential ability, to win this race. He had a poor start last time so we have been working on that up until this race. He was perfect this time. I also concentrated on maintaining his physical condition from when he was best (last start) and that seemed to work out. He's a very clever colt and easy to train, and I will see how he is once back at my yard before discussing his future plans with the owners.

Jockey: Keita Tosaki
I am just so grateful to have been given the opportunity to ride such a wonderful colt in such a prestigious JRA G1 event. It was my first time on Real Impact today but the moment I sat on his back, I could feel his energy underneath me and I knew that we hit it right off from there. He also settled real nicely in the post parade. Mr. Hori had instructed me to be careful about how he breaks out of the gate but he settled well in the stall and was spot on as the gate opened. From there, he flowed into the rhythm and I urged him forward early at the stretch because he's not the explosive type but rather he extends his strides within the rhythm. Once in front, it wasn't for a while that we heard horses charging from behind, but he still had enough to hold them off. Becoming a G1 winner was a dream-come-true for me and I couldn't quite believe what I had been watching on TV was actually happening to me.

THE 61ST YASUDA KINEN (G1) - The Final Leg of Asian Mile Challenge -
3-year-old & up, 1,600 meters (about 1 mile), turf, left-handed
Sunday, June 5, 2011   Tokyo Racecourse   11th Race   Post Time: 15:40
Total prize money: ¥208,000,000 (about US$2,447,000 < US$1 = ¥85 >)
3-y-o: 54kg (about 119lbs.), 4-y-o & up: 58kg (about 128lbs.)
2kg allowance for Fillies & Mares,
1kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2007,
2kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2008   Safety Factor: 18 runners

1. Real Impact (JPN), bay, colt, 3-year-old
   Deep Impact / Tokio Reality (Meadowlake)

   Breeder: Northern Racing	Owner: U. Carrot Farm
   Trainer: Noriyuki Hori	Jockey: Keita Tosaki
   6 starts, 2 wins
   Added money: ¥ 103,822,000	Career earnings: ¥ 177,888,000
   Principal Race Performances:	'11 NHK Mile Cup (G1)   3rd
   	'10 Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes (G1)   2nd

   
   
2. Strong Return (JPN), bay, horse, 5-year-old
   Symboli Kris S / Caught Out (Smart Strike)

   Breeder: Shadai Farm	Owner: Teruya Yoshida
   Trainer: Noriyuki Hori	Jockey: Syu Ishibashi

   
   
3. Smile Jack (JPN), dark bay or brown, horse, 6-year-old
   Tanino Gimlet / She C'est Moi (Sunday Silence)
   

   Breeder: Uemizu Bokujo	Owner: Yomoji Saito
   Trainer: Satoru Kobiyama	Jockey: Kosei Miura

* Yasuda Kinen (G1) - The Final Leg of Asian Mile Challenge -
The Yasuda Kinen, a race to determine the best miler of the spring season, has welcomed over 40 foreign-trained horses since its designation as an international race in 1993, including 1995 champion Heart Lake from the UAE, 2000 winner Fairy King Prawn from Hong Kong and the winner of the 2006 Champions Mile-Yasuda double, Bullish Luck. The race, which used to be one of the two legs of the "Asian Mile Challenge" in 2005 together with the Champions Mile held by the HKJC (Hong Kong Jockey Club), is now the final leg of the world's richest four-race series after the two attractive G1 races held by the Melbourne Racing Club of Australia (Futurity Stakes) and the Dubai Racing Club (Dubai Duty Free) are added in 2006. The project has succeeded in attracting outstanding milers from around the globe in their bid to prove their ability abroad. Last year, Showa Modern (JPN, by Air Jihad) accomplished a father-son victory in the race while renewing the race record. Three runners from Hong Kong took part in the 60th running with Sight Winner (NZ) besting the foreign contestants in fifth while Fellowship (NZ) and Beauty Flash (NZ) finished ninth and 11th respectively.
This year's Yasuda Kinen featured four-year-old filly Apapane (JPN) who had just come off her fifth G1 victory against 2010 Horse of the Year Buena Vista (JPN, by Special Week) in the Victoria Mile (G1, 1,600m) held at the same track at Tokyo. Showa Modern was unable to make his appearance to defend his title due to a nosebleed during training which led to his retirement only last week. Silport (JPN) had registered two grade-race wins before just missing the Keio Hai Spring Cup (G2, 1,400m) to Strong Return (JPN) by a nose. Other proven winners included Jo Cappuccino (JPN) who won the NHK Cup (G1, 1,600m) as a three-year-old, Smile Jack (JPN) winner of the Tokyo Shimbun Hai (G3, 1,600m) and A Shin Forward (USA) last year's Mile Championship (G1, 1,600m) winner.
Beauty Flash (NZ) returned to the race in improved form, having captured the Hong Kong Mile (G1, 1,600m) and two other group one events since his last visit, while Caspar Fownes entered Thumbs Up (NZ), confident with the seven-year-old gelding handling Tokyo's 1,600-meter course which requires stamina exceeding the standard mile distance.
Yasuda Kinen's race record was set by Showa Modern, who covered the mile distance in 1:31.7 in 2010.