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Three-Year-Old Le Vent Se Leve Marks Clear Victory in Record-Tying time in This Year's Champions Cup

Odds-on-favorite Le Vent Se Leve won this year’s Champions Cup in record-tying speed of 1:50.1 and extended his winning streak to four. He is the fourth three-year-old to claim the race (including the Japan Cup Dirt) following Kurofune (2001), Kane Hekili (2005) and Alondite (2006). Scoring three consecutive wins in his three starts as a two-year-old including the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun (dirt, 1,600m), the son of Symboli Kris S marked a runner-up effort in his first start of this season then won three successive races, the Unicorn Stakes (G3, dirt, 1,600m), the Japan Dirt Derby (dirt, 2,000m) and the Mile Championship Nambu Hai (dirt, 1,600m), before coming into this race. This win marked trainer Kiyoshi Hagiwara’s second JRA-G1 victory following the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) with Logi Universe in 2009. For jockey Mirco Demuro, it was his 26th JRA-G1 win following this year’s Osaka Hai with Suave Richard and second Champions Cup victory following his win with Sambista in 2015.

Breaking smoothly from stall two, odds-on-favorite Le Vent Se Leve was unusually positioned toward the front, second or third behind frontrunner Ange Desir. The three-year-old bay traveled along the rails up to the top of the homestretch then overtook the frontrunner from the outside 200 meters out where he accelerated powerfully with the second fastest late drive, pulling away from the rest of the field for a 2-1/2-length victory.

“I didn’t want to be trapped behind horses starting from an inside draw, and he broke well so we were able to sit in a nice position. I let him cruise at his own pace and he responded with a fantastic turn of speed when I asked him once we found an opening at the stretch. He is a colt with great potential and a bright future ahead,” commented Mirco Demuro.

Eighth choice Westerlund broke well from stall 12 then eased back to travel in the very rear, 4-5 lengths behind the rest of the field. The six-year-old son of Neo Universe hugged the rails rounding the last two corners and slipped behind the eventual winner at the top of the stretch, waited for a clear path to present itself between Sunrise Soar and Ange Desir when he exerted an explosive late charge that timed the fastest last three furlongswhile unable to match the winner in second..

Third pick Sunrise Soar traveled two wide in mid-division, around sixth from the front, made bid from the outside after turning the last corner wide and managed to nail Ange Desir 100 meters out but was overtaken by Westerlund in the last strides to finish third.

U.S.-trained Pavel broke sharply and then allowed to settle in fifth or sixth, held his position up to the last turn but failed to respond when asked after entering the stretch and faded to last.

Other Horses:
4th: (1) Ange Desir—set pace, surrendered lead to winner at 200m pole, showed tenacity but overtaken by Sunrise Soar and Westerlund in last 100m
5th: (11) Omega Perfume—traveled 3-wide in mid-division, angled out at early stretch, quickened in last 200m
6th: (7) Sunrise Nova—sat 3rd from rear, circled wide, showed belated charge
7th: (5) Nonkono Yume—unhurried early in 2nd from rear, wide into straight, never a threat
8th: (13) Mitsuba—traveled 3-wide in mid-division, brief effort entering stretch but unable to reach contention
9th: (14) Hiraboku la Tache—rushed out of the gate for front position, ran in 3rd just behind eventual winner, no match with the winning speed and overtaken by late closers
10th: (6) Asukano Roman—saved ground in mid-field, unable to keep up with increasing pace at straight
11th: (8) K T Brave—raced between rivals in mid-pack, 8 lengths from leader, even paced
12th: (10) Centurion—rated in mid-field inside rival, angled out early stretch, unable to launch bid
13th: (15) Incantation—chased leader in front group, tired 300 meters out and faded
14th: (4) Apollo Kentucky—sat 3rd or 4th from rear, brief effort into straight but flattened

THE 19TH CHAMPIONS CUP (G1) – Japan Autumn International -
3-year-olds & up, 1,800 meters (about 9 furlongs), dirt, left-handed
Sunday, December 2, 2018     Chukyo Racecourse         11th Race          Post Time: 15:30
Total prize money: ¥ 216,000,000 (about US$ 1,963,636 <US$1=¥110>)
3-y-o: 56 kg (about 124 lbs), 4-y-o & up: 57 kg (about 126 lbs)
2 kg allowance for Fillies & Mares, 2kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2015
Safety factor: 16 runners

1. 1. Le Vent Se Leve (JPN), bay, colt, 3-year-old
   Symboli Kris S / Maestrale (Neo Universe)

   Owner: G1 Racing Co., Ltd.	Breeder: Shadai Corporation Inc.
   Trainer: Kiyoshi Hagiwara	Jockey: Mirco Demuro
   8 Starts, 7 Wins
   Added money: ¥103,360,000	Career earnings: ¥288,444,000

   
   
2. 2. Westerlund (JPN), chestnut, gelding, 6-year-old
   Neo Universe / Uanme (Marquetry)

   Owner: Sunday Racing Co., Ltd.	Breeder: Northern Racing
   Trainer: Shozo Sasaki	Jockey: Yusuke Fujioka

   
   
3. 3. Sunrise Soar (JPN), dark bay or brown, colt, 4-year-old
   Symboli Kris S / Amelia (Special Week)

   Owner: Takao Matsuoka	Breeder: Tomita Bokujo
   Trainer: Hiroshi Kawachi	Jockey: Joao Moreira

* Champions Cup (G1)
Formerly run under the name Japan Cup Dirt until 2013, the Champions Cup takes place at Chukyo Racecourse which is situated in Chubu region between Tokyo and Osaka. The Japan Cup Dirt, which began as the dirt version of the Japan Cup in 2000 at Tokyo Racecourse held over the 2,100-meter left-handed course until 2007, was temporarily shifted to Nakayama Racecourse over the 1,800-meter right-handed course in 2002, then held at Hanshin Racecourse, also a right-handed track and over 1,800 meters, between 2008 and 2013. Thirteen of the past 18 winners of the Champions Cup, which is one of JRA’s two dirt G1 races along with the February Stakes (G1, dirt, 1,600m), have won the season’s JRA Award for Best Dirt Horse.
Lord Sterling (USA, by Black Tie Affair), who finished third in the inaugural year, was one of the first foreign contenders, while Fleetstreet Dancer (USA, by Smart Strike) became the first foreign winner in 2003. In the past, 28 runners from not only North America but also from France, Germany, Great Britain and Hong Kong have participated in the race and this year’s race welcomed Stephen Foster Handicap (G1, dirt, 1,800m) winner Pavel from the U.S.
Last year’s champion and Best Dirt Horse Gold Dream (JPN, H5, by Gold Allure) withdrew his entry this year due to a minor muscle strain. Le Vent Se Leve came off a win in the Mile Championship Nambu Hai (dirt, 1,600m; Oct.8) where he beat Gold Dream by two lengths and became the first three-year-old to win the race. Key runners coming off the JBC Classic (dirt, 1,900m; Nov.4) were K T Brave (1st), Omega Perfume (2nd), Sunrise Soar (3rd) and this year’s February Stakes champion Nonkono Yume (4th). The field also included the JBC Ladies’ Classic (dirt, 1,800m; Nov.4) winner Ange Desir and the Musashino Stakes (G3, dirt, 1,600m; Nov.10) winner Sunrise Nova.
The race record is held by Sound True (JPN, by French Deputy) who covered the 1,800-meter distance of Chukyo Racecourse in 1:50.1 in 2016 while Nihonpiro Ours (JPN, by White Muzzle) holds the record of 1:48.8 over Hanshin’s 1,800-meter course in the 2012 Japan Cup Dirt.