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Almond Eye Captures Eighth G1 Turf Victory in Tenno Sho (Autumn)

Overwhelming favorite Almond Eye showcased another compelling performance and claimed a back-to-back Tenno Sho (Autumn) title, the first since Symboli Kris S in 2002 and 2003. While she is now the sixth horse to mark seven JRA-G1 wins, the five-year-old Lord Kanaloa mare has gone down in history to become the first JRA horse ever to capture eight G1 titles over turf including the 2019 Dubai Turf. This is the sixth triumph by a filly/mare this year in G1 races opened to both male and female runners, renewing the record of five set in 2008. Following the Victoria Mile victory with Almond Eye, trainer Sakae Kunieda now boasts a total of 18 JRA-G1 wins while jockey Christophe Lemaire has now 32 JRA-G1 wins in his pocket, his latest registered last month in the Sprinters Stakes with Gran Alegria. This is Christophe’s third consecutive Tenno Sho (Autumn) victory following the 2018 version with Rey de Oro and 2019 with Almond Eye, and fifth consecutive Tenno Sho victory, a new JRA record, which includes the 2019 and 2020 Spring version with Fierement.

Almond Eye was placed in handy position, in fourth to fifth, after breaking from stall nine while Danon Premium led the field two to three lengths in front of Daiwa Cagney and Kiseki in that order. Chasing the three into the stretch, the star of the show had no trouble finding her stride, steadily accelerating to inherit the lead from Danon Premium just after the furlong pole and pulled away while holding off the strong enclosure of Fierement for a half-length victory.

“Today, the mare was relaxed before the start and we were able to break well. She showed a great turn of foot in the straight but ran out of steam a bit climbing the hill. The others were gaining on us but she didn’t give up. I have to admit, to win the eighth G1 title was a big pressure, but she didn’t let us down—her performance was awesome. Her future lay in the hands of the owner and trainer but I would very much like to ride her again,” commented a slightly teary Christophe Lemaire after the race.

Fifth pick Fierement traveled in around 10th behind Chrono Genesis and switched to the outside after struggling to find a clear path at the top of the stretch. Accelerating impressively with the fastest last-three-furlong speed and although unable to tag the winner, this year’s victor of the spring version dug in well to cross the wire a neck in front of Chrono Genesis for second.

Other Horses:
4th: (11) Danon Premium—set pace, led and showed tenacity before overtaken by top finishers
5th: (8) Kiseki—chased leaders in third in front of winner, showed effort but no match for top finishers
6th: (3) Daiwa Cagney—tracked leaders in 2nd, ran gamely until 200m pole, outrun thereafter
7th: (12) Jinambo—settled 3-wide in 7th, sustained bid, weakened in last 200m
8th: (2) Cadenas—trailed in rear, turned wide, passed tired rivals
9th: (10) Scarlet Color—sat 2nd from rear, showed brief effort, even paced in last 200m
10th: (5) Win Bright—traveled around 5th behind winner, never fired after turning stretch
11th: (1) Blast Onepiece—raced around 8th early, made headway along rails, showed little at stretch
12th: (4) Danon Kingly—ran around 5th behind winner, faded after 400m pole

THE 162ND TENNO SHO (AUTUMN) (G1)
3-year-olds & up, 2,000 meters (about 10 furlongs), turf, left-handed
Sunday, November 1, 2020     Tokyo Racecourse        11th Race         Post time: 15:40
Total prize money: ¥ 325,000,000 (about US$ 3,010,000 <US$1=¥108>)
3-y-o: 56kg (about 124 lbs), 4-y-o & up: 58kg (about 128 lbs),
2kg allowance for Fillies & Mares, 2kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2017
Course Record: 1:56.1            Race Record: 1:56.1 [Tosen Jordan (JPN, by Jungle Pocket), 2011]
Safety factor: 18 runners     Going: Firm           Weather: Cloudy

Turnover for the Race alone: ¥ 21,508,973,200       Turnover for the Day: ¥ 30,824,098,100       Attendance: 1,310

Winner= 14 starts, 10 wins, 2 seconds, 1 third / Added money: ¥ 152,520,000 / Career earnings: ¥ 1,612,029,900

* Tenno Sho (Autumn) (G1)

“The Emperor’s Cup” was first held in 1905 to encourage the horse racing sport through annual events that gave the winner the highest honor of being awarded the Imperial prize. Then the Tenno Sho (Autumn) was established in 1937 together with its counterpart, Tenno Sho (Spring), under the name “Teishitsu Goshoten Kyoso” and held biannually in both the Eastern and Western part of Japan. The race was officially renamed the “Tenno Sho” in 1947. Both the spring and autumn races, which secured its status as the most prestigious events for older horses, were run over 3,200 meters in the early years. Later, the autumn version was shortened to 2,000 meters in 1984 so that the spring version could determine the best stayer, while the Tenno Sho (Autumn) would be the main target for middle-distance champions. This also gives the three-year-olds, who find the third leg of the Triple Crown, the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger, G1, 3,000m), to be beyond their suitability, an alternative G1 as the ultimate goal for their autumn campaign. The Tenno Sho (Autumn) entered a new chapter in its long history when opening its doors to foreign contenders as an international race in 2005.
This year, in her first autumn start, Almond Eye aimed to defend her Tenno Sho (Autumn) title as well as become the first Japanese horse to capture an eighth G1 title over turf. Runners who also kicked off their autumn campaign in this race were two-time Hong Kong G1 title holder Win Bright, back-to-back Tenno Sho (Spring) (G1, 3,200m) victor Fierement, 2017 Best Two-Year-Old Colt Danon Premium, Takarazuka Kinen (G1, 2,200m) champion Chrono Genesis and Arima Kinen (G1, 2,500m) victor Blast Onepiece. Trial race finishers included Daiwa Cagney and 2017 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger, G1, 3,000m) winner Kiseki, who both came off a second in the Mainichi Okan (G2, 1,800m; Oct.11) and the Kyoto Daishoten (G2, 2,400m; Oct.11), respectively.