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Gold Dream Conquers Heavy Contest in This Year's February Stakes

Second favorite Gold Dream captured the February Stakes title this year and demonstrated his aptitude and liking for the Tokyo dirt mile course as he marked his third victory out of four, which includes his first grade-race triumph in the G3 Unicorn Stakes last June. The Gold Allure colt was entered off a disappointing 12th in the December Champions Cup after being sent off second favorite, but displayed a sound and convincing performance this time scoring his first G1 win as if paying tribute to his sire who passed away the previous day. This is the second JRA-G1 win for trainer Osamu Hirata who claimed his first with Curren Black Hill in the 2012 NHK Mile Cup, while jockey Mirco Demuro notched his 19th JRA-G1 victory, his latest with Queens Ring in the Queen Elizabeth II Cup last season, and celebrates his second February Stakes title since his victory last year on board Moanin.

Gold Dream broke fairly from stall three and was reserved in mid-division behind Best Warrior down the backstretch as Incantation headed the full field of 16 runners. As the bunched-up field fanned out rounding the final corner to secure room for their stretch-run, the Gold Allure colt also floated out wide entering the lane in seventh to eighth but galloped confidently picking off his tiring rivals one by one, finally pinning the brief leader Nishiken Mononofu before the furlong pole, and held off a fast closing Best Warrior by a neck for the title.

“In the Champions Cup, he broke poorly and was keen—he didn’t stretch at all. But today he was relaxed even after entering the track. His start was good, he was positioned well and responded beautifully in the straight. He still had a lot left at the end,” commented Mirco Demuro.

Best Warrior, sent off fifth favorite, was also reserved in mid-pack but took an inner route making the final turns and was blocked behind horses in early stretch. However, the patient seven-year-old found a gap chasing Nishiken Mononofu who pulled away in front of him two furlongs out, and unleashed a strong late run to threaten the winner for a neck second.

Other Horses:
4th: (13) A Shin Bakken—settled in rear pack, turned wide, showed acceleration, timed 2nd fastest last 3 furlongs
5th: (12) Nishiken Mononofu—stalked leader in 2nd, led 400m out, maintained lead until 200m out, held well
6th: (15) K T Brave—ran 3-wide in 5th, sustained bid until 100m out, weakened thereafter
7th: (11) Nonkono Yume—sat behind winner, showed brief effort but lacked needed kick
8th: (1) Sound True—took economic trip near rear, switched to outside for clear path, improved position
9th: (2) White Fugue—raced in 4th, sustained bid, but weakened in final strides
10th: (7) Brightline—saved ground towards rear, passed tired rivals in last furlong
11th: (14) King’s Guard—ran outside winner, turned wide, quickened in last 100m
12th: (6) Moanin—traveled in mid-group, failed to respond at stretch
13th: (16) Incantation—set pace from widest stall, sustained bid until 300m out, outrun thereafter
14th: (4) Copano Rickey—chased leaders in 3rd, led briefly at top of stretch, dropped back after 300m out
15th: (5) Asukano Roman—hugged rails in mid-division, unable to reach contention
16th: (8) Denim and Ruby—first outing on dirt race, throughout rear, no factor

THE 34TH FEBRUARY STAKES (G1)
4-year-old & up, 1,600 meters (about 8 furlongs), dirt, left-handed
Sunday, February 19, 2017     Tokyo Racecourse      11th Race        Post time: 15:40
Total prize money: ¥ 209,920,000 (about US$ 1,909,000 <US$1=¥110>)
4-y-o & up: 57kg (about 126 lbs), 2kg allowance for Fillies & Mares,
1kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2013
Safety factor: 16 runners

1. 1.Gold Dream (JPN), bay, colt, 4-year-old
   Gold Allure / Mon Vert (French Deputy)

   Owner: Katsumi Yoshida	Breeder: Northern Farm
   Trainer: Osamu Hirata	Jockey: Mirco Demuro
   9 Starts, 5 Wins
   Added money: ¥ 100,528,000	Career earnings: ¥ 199,524,000
   Principal Race Performances:	’16 Unicorn Stakes (G3, dirt, 1,600m)	1st

   
   
2. 2.Best Warrior (USA), chestnut, horse, 7-year-old
   Majestic Warrior / Flirtatious Miss (Mr. Greeley)

   Owner: Yukio Baba	Breeder: Buck Pond Farm, Inc
   Trainer: Sei Ishizaka	Jockey: Keita Tosaki

   
   
3. 3.Kafuji Take (JPN), dark bay or brown, horse, 5-year-old
   Precise End / Take the Cake (Scan)

   Owner: Mamoru Kato	Breeder: Hidaka Farm
   Trainer: Sachio Yukubo	Jockey: Akihide Tsumura

* February Stakes (G1)

Japanese horse racing, which is influenced by British racing, is held mainly on turf. However, dirt tracks that were popular in the U.S., quickly became widely used around the country since the Tokyo Racecourse implemented a new dirt track in 1960. While the mainstream of major JRA races remained over turf, the February Stakes (then called February Handicap), which was established in 1984 in conjunction with the new grading system, was one of just three graded dirt races at the time—the current number of graded dirt events is 15. The race was upgraded to G2 in 1994 and then to G1 in 1997, and stood as the highest-prized event until the Japan Cup Dirt (called the Champions Cup from 2014) took over in 2000.
Past winners include Wing Arrow (JPN, by Assatis; ’00), Agnes Digital (USA, by Crafty Prospector; ’02), Gold Allure (JPN, by Sunday Silence; ’03), Admire Don (JPN, by Timber Country; ’04), Kane Hekili (JPN, by Fuji Kiseki; ’06), Vermilion (JPN, by El Condor Pasa; ’08), Espoir City (JPN, by Gold Allure; ’10), Transcend (JPN, by Wild Rush; ’11) and Copano Rickey (’14&’15)—all nine are winners of multiple-G1 races as well as JRA Award winners.