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Race Favorite Maurice Captures This Year's Yasuda Kinen in His First G1 Attempt

Odds-on-favorite Maurice registered four consecutive victories and his first G1 title by winning this year’s Yasuda Kinen to become the Best Miler of the spring season. Debuting as a two-year-old in 2013, he marked two wins out of three starts but was unable to enter the Classics as he finished fifth, fourth, seventh and third in his four starts during his three-year-old season. After moving to the present stable and taking a break of over six months, the son of Screen Hero regained his form as he landed three consecutive wins since coming back in January, including his first grade-race victory in the Lord Derby Challenge Trophy.

Trainer Noriyuki Hori registered his eighth JRA-G1 win following last week’s victory in the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) with Duramente, and third Yasuda Kinen title—he has won the race with Real Impact in 2011 and Strong Return in 2012. Jockey Yuga Kawada captured his sixth G1 title following last year’s Queen Elizabeth II Cup with Lachesis. The winner’s sire, Screen Hero (JPN, by Grass Wonder) is the winner of the Japan Cup in 2008, and Maurice is the first of his offspring to capture a G1 title.

As the 2011 Yasuda Kinen winner Real Impact rushed out to set the pace with Victoria Mile runner-up Keiai Elegant pressing the pace in second, race favorite Maurice settled fifth from the front and gradually advanced forward by turning wide through the third corner. Entering the fourth corner third from the front, the son of Screen Hero passed the tiring Real Impact through the uphill climb, then, responding to Kawada’s urgings, pinned Keiai Elegant before the 200-meter pole and galloped powerfully before the cheering crowd while fending off the strong charge from behind by Vincennes before the wire.

“Though he was a little off-balance in the gate, we were able to break smoothly. He was a bit eager to go but I was able to keep him under control. He ran a really smooth race and we were able to slip out of the pack in good timing after entering the straight. I thought that we would be able to win easily but when Vincennes closed in behind us, I urged him to go, hoping that the colt will manage to fend him off. He has matured a lot since I last rode him over a year ago and so I was able to ride him with confidence,” commented Yuga Kawada.

Third pick Vincennes traveled toward the rear of the mid-pack, and although being hemmed in at the top of the stretch, the six-year-old son of Deep Impact managed to thread through the horses and, once finding an opening to his outside, unleashed a ferocious late charge—the fastest of the field in the last three furlongs—for a neck second.

Other Horses:
4th: (10) Fiero—raced behind winner, met traffic at early stretch, lacked needed kick
5th: (15) Keiai Elegant—chased leader in 2nd, inherited lead at 400m out, passed by winner around 200m out but showed tenacity
6th: (11) Blaze a Trail—settled in mid-division, boxed in at top of stretch, showed effort after 400m pole
7th: (16) Curren Black Hill—traveled wide in mid-pack, passed tired rivals
8th: (8) Red Arion—stalked leaders in 3rd, maintained bid until 200m out, then weakened
9th: (17) Extra End—sat 3rd-4th from last, showed effort until 200m pole, then even paced
10th: (2) Danon Shark—hugged rail in mid-group, switched to right after final turn, checked 200m out
11th: (1) Sunrise Major—saved ground in mid-pack, found little room at early stretch, even paced
12th: (9) Real Impact—set moderate pace, surrendered lead at 400m marker, outrun by rivals in last 200m
13th: (14) Satono Gallant—trailed in rear, showed belated charge, timed 2nd fastest over last 3 furlongs
14th: (4) Meisho Mambo—sat in mid-division, lost momentum at furlong pole
15th: (5) Mikki Isle—raced near pace, met traffic 300m out, unable to reach contention
16th: (3) Daiwa Maggiore—was off slow, positioned toward rear, never fired
17th: (7) Sakura Gospel—ran 2nd from last, no factor

THE 65TH YASUDA KINEN (G1)
3-year-old & up, 1,600 meters (about 8 furlongs), turf, left-handed
Sunday, June 7, 2015    Tokyo Racecourse      11th Race      Post Time: 15:40
Total prize money: ¥ 208,000,000 (about US$ 1,733,300 <US$1=¥120>)
3-y-o: 54kg (about 119 lbs), 4-y-o & up: 58kg (about 128 lbs), 2kg allowance for Fillies & Mares,
1kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2011,
2kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2012
Safety factor: 18 runners

1. Maurice (JPN), bay, colt, 4-year-old
   Screen Hero / Mejiro Frances (Carnegie)

   Breeder: Togawa Bokujo	Owner: Kazumi Yoshida
   Trainer: Noriyuki Hori	Jockey: Yuga Kawada
   11 Starts, 6 Wins
   Added money: ¥ 103,654,000	Career earnings: ¥ 209,186,000
   Principal Race Performances:	’15 Lord Derby Challenge Trophy (G3, 1,600m)	1st

   
   
2. Vincennes (JPN), bay, horse, 6-year-old
   Deep Impact / Flower Park (Nihon Pillow Winner)

   Breeder: Shadai Corporation Inc.	Owner: Shadai Race Horse Co., Ltd.
   Trainer: Mikio Matsunaga	Jockey: Yuichi Fukunaga

   
   
3. Clarente (JPN), chestnut, horse, 6-year-old
   Dance in the Dark / Erimo Pixy (Dancing Brave)

   Breeder: North Hills Management	Owner: Shinji Maeda
   Trainer: Kojiro Hashiguchi	Jockey: Hironobu Tanabe

* Yasuda Kinen (G1)
The Yasuda Kinen, a race to determine the best miler of the spring season, has welcomed just over 50 foreign-trained horses since its designation as an international race in 1993, including 1995 champion Heart Lake (GB, by Nureyev) from the UAE, 2000 winner Fairy King Prawn (AUS, by Danehill) from Hong Kong and the winner of the 2006 Champions Mile-Yasuda Kinen double, Bullish Luck (USA, by Royal Academy). The race, however, was contested without any participation from abroad this year for the first time in 12 years.
Past Yasuda Kinen winners that have subsequently become the season’s Horse of the Year include Oguri Cap (JPN, by Dancing Cap; ’90), Taiki Shuttle (USA, by Devil's Bag; ’98), Vodka (JPN, by Tanino Gimlet; ’08&’09) and Lord Kanaloa (JPN, by King Kamehameha; ’13).
Last year, Just a Way (JPN, by Heart’s Cry), who had come off an overwhelming victory in the Dubai Duty Free (G1, 1,800m) and was subsequently named the World’s Best Racehorse, claimed the race by a nose on soft going.
This year’s contenders included: Danon Shark, winner of last year’s Mile Championship (G1, 1,600m), who finished fifth in the Hankyu Hai (G3, 1,400m) held on March 1 and avoided the Milers Cup (G2, 1,600m) on April 26 due to a stone bruise; Red Arion who registered his first grade-race victory in the Milers Cup; Fiero, runner-up of the Mile Championship and third-place finisher of the Milers Cup; Sakura Gospel, who captured his third grade-race title in the Keio Hai Spring Cup (G2, 1,400m) on May 16; Vincennes, runner-up of the same race and winner of the Tokyo Shimbun Hai (G3, 1,600m) in February; 2011 Yasuda Kinen champion Real Impact, who claimed the George Ryder Stakes (G1, 1,500m) in Australia in March and was runner-up in the Doncaster Mile (G1, 1,600m) in April; Real Impact’s stablemate Maurice who registered three consecutive victories when winning the Lord Derby Challenge Trophy (G3, 1,600m) on April 5; 2014 NHK Mile Cup (G1, 1,600m) winner Mikki Isle who came off a third-place finish in the Takamatsunomiya Kinen (G1, 1,200m) on March 29; and 2012 NHK Mile Cup victor Curren Black Hill coming off an eighth in the Sankei Osaka Hai (G2, 2,000m) on April 5.
The race record 1:31.3 was set by Strong Return (JPN, by Symboli Kris S) in 2012.