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Five-Year-Old Chuwa Wizard Captures First JRA-G1 Title in This Year's Champions Cup

Fourth pick Chuwa Wizard won this year’s Champions Cup to register his first JRA-G1 victory, putting a stop to the streak of JRA G1 races being won by race favorites since Sprinters Stakes at seven. The five-year-old son of King Kamehameha has only been raced on dirt since his debut start in February of his three-year-old season. While his only JRA graded win was in last year’s Heian Stakes (G3, dirt, 1,900m), he has multiple major titles at NAR (local public racing) races including the Nagoya Grand Prix (dirt, 2,500m) in 2018, the Diolite Kinen (dirt, 2,400m) and the JBC Classic (dirt, 2,000m) in 2019 and this year’s Kawasaki Kinen (dirt, 2,100m). Coming off a third in the JBC Classic in November, Chuwa Wizard is a consistent runner with 10-3-4 out of 18 starts, his only unplaced start being a fourth in last year’s Champions Cup. This win marked trainer Ryuji Okubo’s third JRA-G1 win following his 2014 Mile Championship title with Danon Shark and jockey Keita Tosaki’s eighth JRA-G1 victory following his 2018 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) win with Epoca d’Oro.

Chuwa Wizard broke sharply and traveled in mid-division, around eighth from the front, eying Chrysoberyl traveling in front. The five-year-old brown continued to stalk the race favorite turning the last corners wide, unleashed a powerful charge in the lane with the tied-fastest closing speed while overtaking his rivals one by one and, once taking the front 100 meters out, easily pulled away to a 2-1/2-length victory.

“The horse was in very good condition and felt really good. With Chrysoberyl traveling in front, I was able to feel his response while marking the race favorite. As it takes time for him to accelerate, I urged him to go early and the horse responded with great strength,” commented Keita Tosaki.

Last year’s runner-up and 2017 winner Gold Dream settled around 10-11th from the front and steered to the outside entering the lane to make bid. The seven-year-old son of Gold Allure produced an impressive late kick—third fastest closing speed—behind Chuwa Wizard and, though unable to catch up with the winner, managed to pull ahead of Inti before the wire for second place.

Tenth favorite Inti surged out from stall 13 to rally for the lead but settled in second to press the pace. Six-year-old son of Came Home continued to run persistently in the lane to take the front 200 meters out but was unable to hold off the challenges by the winner and the runner-up and finished a neck behind the runner-up in third.

Other Horses:
5th: (12) Mozu Ascot—sat around 14th, circled wide, launched tied fastest late kick, belatedly
6th: (7) Cafe Pharoah—ran 3-wide around 10th, even paced at stretch
7th: (6) Air Spinel—settled around 13th, showed belated charge between horses
8th: (1) Time Flyer—took economic trip around 8th, lacked needed kick at stretch
9th: (9) Arctos—raced around 7th, made headway in backstretch, showed effort until 200m pole
10th: (4) Air Almas—set pace, outrun in last 200m
11th: (5) Clincher—traveled 3-wide around 11th, unable to reach contention
12th: (8) Sunrise Nova—saved ground 2nd or 3rd from rear, angled out, never fired
13th: (10) Another Truth—tracked leaders in 3rd along rails, used up 200m out
14th: (16) Satono Titan—was off slow, trailed in rear, no factor
15th: (3) Meisho Wazashi—hugged rails around 4th, faded after middle of backstretch
16th: (14) Yoshio—prominent early around 4th, ran out of steam after 3rd corner

THE 21ST CHAMPIONS CUP (G1) – Japan Autumn International –
3-year-olds & up, 1,800 meters (about 9 furlongs), dirt, left-handed
Sunday, December 6, 2020       Chukyo Racecourse           11th Race           Post Time: 15:30
Total prize money: ¥ 216,000,000 (about US$ 2,000,000 <US$1=¥108>)
3-y-o: 56 kg (about 123-124 lbs), 4-y-o & up: 57 kg (about 126 lbs)
2 kg allowance for Fillies & Mares, 2kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2017
Course Record: 1:47.6              Race Record: 1:48.5 [Chrysoberyl (JPN, by Gold Allure), 2019]
Safety factor: 16 runners     Going: Standard    Weather: Fine

Turnover for the Race alone: ¥ 15,178,023,800        Turnover for the Day: ¥ 21,013,122,700        Attendance: 1,915

Winner= 18 starts, 10 wins, 3 seconds, 4 thirds / Added money: ¥ 103,360,000 / Career earnings: ¥ 491,021,000

* 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. Fifteen of the past 20 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, 29 runners from not only North America but also from France, Germany, Great Britain and Hong Kong have participated in the race including 2018 Stephen Foster Handicap (G1, dirt, 1,800m) winner Pavel (USA, by Creative Cause) from the U.S. who finished 15th in 2018.
Defending champion and 2019 Best Dirt Horse Chrysoberyl remained undefeated in Japan by winning the JBC Classic (dirt, 2,000m, Nov.3), in which Chuwa Wizard, this year’s Kawasaki Kinen (dirt, 2,100m) victor, was third.
Key runners coming off other prep races were: from the Mile Championship Nambu Hai (dirt, 1,600m, Oct.12), Arctos (winner), 2017 Best Dirt Horse Gold Dream (6th) and last year’s February Stakes victor Inti (9th); from the Miyako Stakes (G3, dirt, 1,800m, Nov.8), winner Clincher who captured his first graded title on dirt and Air Almas (4th), winner of the Tokai Stakes (G2, dirt, 1,800m, Jan.26); and from the Musashino Stakes (G3, dirt, 1,600m; Nov.14), 2019 Mile Championship Nambu Hai victor Sunrise Nova (winner), 2017 Hopeful Stakes (G1, 2,000m) champion Time Flyer (5th) and this year’s February Stakes winner Mozu Ascot (7th).
The field also included Sirius Stakes (G3, dirt, 1,900m; Oct.3) champion Cafe Pharoah.