2024 News
International Stakes: Durezza tenacious at York, but no match for City of Troy
The International Stakes Aug. 21 at York Racecourse in England’s northeast went to race favorite City of Troy in a spectacular wire-to-wire bid that saw him top a field of 13 in record time and finish out in front by a length. 2023 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger) champion Durezza, Japan’s only participant in the race and taking on his first bid abroad, gave a brave performance but was largely spent over the final 2 furlongs. He ultimately allowed four runners in the field of 13 to beat him to the finish line. City of Troy, a 3-year-old son of Justify, clocked 2 minutes 4.32 seconds over 2,050 meters of Good To Firm turf to take home the lion’s share of the 1.25-million-pounds-sterling pot of the feature race of the 4-day Ebor meet. Ridden by Ryan Moore, City of Troy, U.S.-bred and Ireland-based at the stables of Aidan O’Brien (who has now won a record seven International Stakes), finished a full length ahead of French runner Calandagan (a 3-year-old Irish-bred gelding by Gleneagles) with Stephane Pasquier up. Two U.K.-based horses, the 3-year-old colt Ghostwriter and Bluestocking, a 4-year-old filly and the only female in the field, followed in third and fourth place, respectively, with more than 3 lengths between them. Japan’s Durezza just made the board as he crossed the line 2 lengths and a quarter behind Bluestocking in fifth place, holding off Royal Rhyme by a head. The first challenger from Japan in 5 years to take on the race, the Duramente-sired Durezza was only the third entry from Japan to have participated in the race up to now. Zenno Rob Roy was the first, in 2005, and Cheval Grand the second, in 2019. The former claims the best result, a second amid seven runners, the latter, an eighth place amid nine. Since Durezza’s debut in September of 2022, Christophe Lemaire has ridden six of the striking black colt’s nine starts thus far, including his win of the Grade 1 classic Kikuka Sho. His bid at York was his first race in nearly 4 months following time off due to a fracture, and Lemaire had been hopeful that the venue’s long stretch and the colt’s stamina would translate well at York. “He has a bit slow at the break, as usual, and we traveled in third and fourth position,” said Lemaire, who noted that his mount had been “cool-headed under way and his footwork was good.” As it was, “He still had a lot left heading into the straight but he wasn’t able to keep up with the fast pace over the final 300-400 meters,” Lemaire added, and praised the colt for his honest work. “He put in a good effort and I do think that coming back after a break was a factor.” Durezza was found to have incurred a fracture during his April 28 bid in the Tenno Sho (Spring), where he had surprised with a 15th-place finish amid 17 horses. Trainer Tomohito Ozeki, based at the eastern JRA training center of Miho, said, "I hadn’t imagined that City of Troy, who had a gate inside of us, would take the lead and hold on like he did, dominating the race and winning in record time.” “Durezza held his ground well in the straight and he did go for the win, but in the final stage you could see the difference in strength. The ground suited him and I think he gave it his all for the condition he’s presently in. This time, yes, the wall stopped him, but his performance also showed me that he still has a lot to give. He ran his heart out and I would like to aim him for a big race when we return to Japan.” Please visit the following websites for more information.
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