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Straight Girl Captures First G1 Title in Her Second Victoria Mile Challenge

Fifth pick Straight Girl demonstrated a magnificent turn of foot in the straight, tying Apapane’s record time, to capture her first G1 title. After landing her first graded win in the 2014 Silk Road Stakes (G3) in February, she was third in both the Takamatsunomiya Kinen (G1) and Victoria Mile last year and continued to perform well in autumn, finishing second in the Sprinters Stakes (G1) and third in the Hong Kong Sprint (G1). Although heavily beaten to 13th in her first start of this season in the Takamatsunomiya Kinen, she admirably regained her form to land her first G1 win. Trainer Hideaki Fujiwara marked his second Victoria Mile victory, following his title in 2008 with Asian Winds, and sixth JRA-G1 win following his Mile Championship title in 2013 with Tosen Ra, while jockey Keita Tosaki registered his fourth following his Arima Kinen victory last year with Gentildonna.

Last year’s third-place finisher Straight Girl broke well from stall five and settled fifth from the front, waiting diligently behind Red Reveur until turning for home. Just when her rivals started to tire going up the hill, the Fuji Kiseki mare found another gear and unleashed a powerful drive in the last 200 meters, passing frontrunner Minaret then Keiai Elegant just before the wire for her first G1 victory.

“She broke really well today. I thought that the pace would be somewhat fast and that she will stretch well if I can save her energy until the right moment. The frontrunners were holding off well in the straight but the mare showed a magnificent turn of foot. I rode her for the first time today but she was easy to ride and ran a strong race,” commented Keita Tosaki.

Twelfth pick Keiai Elegant broke sharply and traveled behind Minaret in second although lagging 5-6 lengths behind the frontrunner through the corners. The King Kamehameha mare steadily closed the gap in the homestretch, but just when she finally nailed the front 100 meters out, Straight Girl was already close behind to claim the race by a head margin.

Quick out of the gate from the outermost stall, longshot Minaret immediately took command and set a fast pace, leaving a wide gap between the rest of the field. While showing signs of fatigue entering the straight, the 5-year-old Suzuka Mambo mare held on well to cross the wire in third. With 12th pick Keiai Elegant coming in second and 18th choice Minaret coming in third, the race marked the highest trifecta payout among G1 races and second highest among all races in JRA history. Payouts for place, quinella place and trio were also the highest among all graded races.

Top favorite Nuovo Record was positioned outside Straight Girl around 6th from the front, and Yasunari Iwata, who had partnered with Straight Girl until the previous race, urged his mount to go after entering the straight but the Heart’s Cry mare did not respond and finished sixth, 0.6 seconds behind the winner.

Other Horses:
4th: (4) Red Reveur—saved ground in 4th, sustained bid but finished 1-1/2 lengths behind Minaret
5th: (2) Cafe Brilliant—raced behind winner, quickened 300m out but no match for winner
7th: (6) Dia de la Madre—broke poorly, angled wide, accelerated and timed fastest over last 3 furlongs
8th: (17) Shonan Pandora—sat 4-wide in mid-pack, lacked needed kick at stretch
9th: (10) Hana’s Goal—ran 3-wide in mid-division, even paced at stretch
10th: (11) Smart Layer—trailed in rear, showed belated charge at stretch
11th: (16) Little Gerda—rushed to 3rd from wide draw, weakened after 200m marker
12th: (3) Sweet Salsa—settled back in mid-group, even paced at stretch
13th: (8) Bounce Shasse—traveled in rear pack, switched to right 400m out, lacked needed kick
14th: (9) Belle Lumiere—raced inside winner, failed to respond at stretch
15th: (12) Alma Divin—ran in rear pack, met traffic at top of stretch, unable to reach contention
16th: (1) Tagano Etoile—hugged rail in mid-division, never fired
17th: (13) Meisho Mambo—sat 2nd from last, turned wide, never threatened
18th: (14) Western Merci—traveled wide toward rear, no factor

THE 10TH VICTORIA MILE (G1)
4-year-old & up, Fillies & Mares, 1,600 meters (about 8 furlongs), turf, left-handed
Sunday, May 17, 2015    Tokyo Racecourse     11th Race        Post time: 15:40
Total prize money: ¥ 188,200,000 (about US$ 1,568,300 <US$1=¥120>)
4-y-o & up: 55kg (about 121 lbs), 1kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2011
Safety factor: 18 runners

1. Straight Girl (JPN), bay, mare, 6-year-old
   Fuji Kiseki / Never Period (Taiki Shuttle)

   Owner: Toshihiro Hirosaki	Breeder: TH Co., Ltd.
   Trainer: Hideaki Fujiwara	Jockey: Keita Tosaki
   26 Starts, 9 Wins
   Added money: ¥ 93,822,000	Career earnings: ¥ 366,545,900
   Principal Race Performances:	’14 Silk Road Stakes (G3, 1,200m)	1st
   	’14 Sprinters Stakes (G1, 1,200m)	2nd
   	’14 Hong Kong Sprint (G1, 1,200m)	3rd
   	’14 Victoria Mile (G1, 1,600m)	3rd
   	’14 Takamatsunomiya Kinen (G1, 1,200m)	3rd

   
   
2. Keiai Elegant (JPN), dark bay or brown, mare, 6-year-old
   King Kamehameha / Post Parade (A. P. Indy)

   Owner: Kazuhiro Kameda	Breeder: Keiai Orthopedic Appliance Co., Ltd.
   Trainer: Mitsuhiro Ogata	Jockey: Yutaka Yoshida

   
   
3. Minaret (JPN), bay, mare, 5-year-old
   Suzuka Mambo / Noisette (Warning)

   Owner: Mill Farm Co., Ltd.	Breeder: Kiyotake Bokujo
   Trainer: Naru Owada	Jockey: Teruo Eda

* Victoria Mile (G1)
In accordance with the restructuring of JRA racing program for fillies/mares executed in the 2006 season, the Victoria Mile was established to give the older fillies/mares a stage to prove their ability among their own sex, in addition to the Queen Elizabeth II Cup, which had been the only G1 reserved for older fillies/mares. While the Queen Elizabeth is run over 2,200 meters and held in mid-November, the Victoria Mile is held in spring and provides female milers a chance to claim a G1 title without having a tough competition in a mixed field.
The race, however, attracts not only fillies/mares suited to the mile distance but also outstanding runners from the middle-long distance group. Two-time Horse of the Year winner Vodka (JPN, by Tanino Gimlet) claimed the title in 2009 by an overwhelming seven-length margin and the race record (1:31.9) was renewed in 2011 by Apapane (JPN, by King Kamehameha) who, after having claimed all three titles of the fillies’ version of the Triple Crown during 2010, held off defending champion and 2010 Horse of the Year Buena Vista (JPN, by Special Week) for a neck victory. Last year’s race was defended by Verxina (JPN, by Deep Impact) who had claimed her first G1 title in the race in 2013.
Last year’s Oka Sho victor Harp Star (JPN, by Deep Impact), who was eighth in the Dubai Sheema Classic (G1, 2,410m) in March, was scheduled to participate in this race, but the retirement of the filly was announced at the beginning of this month when she sustained a suspensory desmitis on her right foreleg. Last year’s Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks, G1, 2,400m) winner Nuovo Record came off a win against male horses in the Nakayama Kinen (G2, 1,800m) in March 1 while Shuka Sho (G1, 2,000m) winner Shonan Pandora came off a ninth-place finish in the Sankei Osaka Hai (G2, 2,000m) on April 5. Other contenders included: Cafe Brilliant who registered her third back-to-back victory and first grade-race win in the Hanshin Himba Stakes (G2, 1,400m) on April 11; 2013 Best Two-Year-Old Filly Red Reveur who was sixth in the same race; last year’s Australian G1 All Aged Stakes (1,400m) champion Hana’s Goal who was 11th; and 2013 Best Three-Year-Old Filly and last year’s Victoria Mile runner-up Meisho Mambo (13th). Keiai Elegant, Bounce Shasse, and Sweet Salsa came off a win in the Kyoto Himba Stakes (G3, 1,600m) on January 24, Nakayama Himba Stakes (G3, 1,800m) on March 15, and Fukushima Himba Stakes (G3, 1,800m) on April 25, respectively. Last year’s third-place finisher Straight Girl was 13th in the Takamatsunomiya Kinen (G1, 1,200m) held on March 29, and Dia de la Madre, with three graded victories under her belt, came off a seventh-place finish in the Milers Cup (G2, 1,600m) held on April 26.