PDF(201kb)

Meisho Tabaru Claims Wire-to-Wire Victory in All-Star Takarazuka Kinen

Seventh favorite Meisho Tabaru led the field wire-to-wire to capture his third graded and first G1 title in this year’s Takarazuka Kinen after his fifth-place finish in the Dubai Turf (G1, 1,800m) on April 5. Sired by 2014 Takarazuka Kinen champion Gold Ship, the bay colt broke his maiden in his third start in December as a two-year-old and won his first grade-race title in the Mainichi Hai (G3, 1,800m) in his three-year-old spring campaign before finishing 17th in the Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas, G1, 2,000m). He added another graded victory in the Kobe Shimbun Hai (G2, 2,200m) that autumn but disappointed to 16th in the following Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger, G1, 3,000m) in October and 11th in his kick-off start of this season, the Nikkei Shinshun Hai (G2, 2,200m) in January. Trainer Mamoru Ishibashi, who won the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) as a jockey in 2006 and opened his yard in 2014, registered his third graded and first G1 victory. Jockey Yutaka Take marked his 84th JRA-G1 title following last year’s Japan Cup with Do Deuce and extended his own record of Takarazuka Kinen victories to five—Inari One (1989), Mejiro McQueen (1993), Marvelous Sunday (1997) and Deep Impact (2006).

Quick out of stall 12, four-year-old Meisho Tabaru promptly took the front to set the pace and continued to lead the all-star field through the backstretch. Although threatened by Bellagio Opera in the final corners, the Gold Ship colt found another gear after entering the stretch and pulled away tenaciously to capture his first G1 title with a comfortable three-length victory.

“My plan was to take the lead, and although I was unsure about the pace, I think we were able to race at just the right pace. I knew the other horses were going to make bid early but my mount had good momentum going around the fourth corner and I was hoping that he would manage to push through,” commented jockey Yutaka Take.

Race favorite Bellagio Opera broke smoothly and settled in fourth, 2-3 lengths behind the front three runners. As the field approached the final corners, the Lord Kanaloa bay shifted to the outside to make bid, entered the lane in second and, though unable to display his usual late charge, managed to hold off the strong charge from behind to secure the runner-up seat.

Tenth choice Justin Palace saved ground around 14th, gradually switched to the outside in the backstretch and circled wide to enter the lane in 15th. The son of Deep Impact launched the fastest kick over the last three furlongs and, while having too much ground to catch the front two finishers, crossed a neck behind the runner-up to finish third.

Other Horses:
4th: (16) Shonan la Punta—raced wide in 11th, made headway after 3rd corner, showed effort
5th: (5) Chuck Nate—sat in 12th on rails, advanced to 3rd at 200m pole, outrun in final strides
6th: (11) Sol Oriens—trailed in rear, circled wide, showed 2nd fastest late drive but belatedly
7th: (10) Libyan Glass—tracked leaders in 2nd or 3rd, sustained bid until 200m pole
8th: (15) Lord del Rey—hugged rails in 13th, passed tired rivals on inner stretch
9th: (2) Durezza—sat in 6th on rails, failed to respond at stretch
10th: (6) Boldog Hos—traveled in 10th, angled out, lacked needed kick
11th: (17) Regaleira—settled wide in 8th, advanced after 3rd corner, failed to find another gear
12th: (8) Chevalier Rose—raced 2nd form rear on rails, unable to reach contention
13th: (4) Pradaria—ran in 4th early, gradually dropped back
14th: (13) Urban Chic—traveled wide in 14th, never fired at stretch
15th: (3) Rousham Park—took economic trip in 9th, checked at final corner, outrun
16th: (14) June Take—chased pace in 2nd, faded after final corner
17th: (9) Yoho Lake—sat in 5-6th behind favorite, dropped back at stretch

THE 66TH TAKARAZUKA KINEN (G1)
3-year-olds & up, 2,200 meters (about 11 furlongs), turf, right-handed
Sunday, June 15, 2025          Hanshin Racecourse          11th Race            Post time: 15:40
Total prize money: ¥ 651,000,000 (about US$ 4,147,000 <US$1=¥157>)
3-y-o: 53kg (about 117 lbs), 4-y-o & up: 58kg (about 128 lbs), 2kg allowance for Fillies & Mares,
1kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2021, 3kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere-bred born in 2022
Course Record: 2:09.7          Race Record: 2:09.7 [Titleholder (JPN, by Duramente), 2022]
Safety factor: 18 runners       Going: Good                      Weather: Fine

Turnover for the Race alone: ¥ 26,257,727,800       Turnover for the Day: ¥ 36,486,736,200       Attendance: 48,904

Winner= 11 starts: 5 wins / Added & stakes money: ¥ 303,612,000 / Career earnings: ¥ 441,646,600

* Takarazuka Kinen (G1)

The Takarazuka Kinen, established in 1960, opened its doors to foreign-trained horses in 1997 and became the first international grade-one race designated by the International Cataloguing Standards Committee (ICSC) held in western Japan in 2001. The race joined the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series in 2011, enabling its winner to earn automatic starting position in the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1, 2,400m). The winner is also eligible to start in the Cox Plate (G1, 2,040m) since 2019. In 2018, the race welcomed Hong Kong’s 2015/16 Horse of the Year Werther (NZ, by Tavistock) who finished a neck second. He was the second foreign contender to challenge the race since Australian-trained Seto Stayer (AUS, by Bellotto; 9th) in 1997. The venue was temporarily shifted to Kyoto Racecourse last year due to the repair of the stands at Hanshin Racecourse.
It is a Grand Prix (All-Star) race, along with the year-end Arima Kinen (G1, 2,500m), in which the runners are selected by a fan poll. The fans can cast their votes online to select the ten most popular runners. Among the horses entered in the race, ten runners with the most votes are entitled to run in the race while the rest of the field is determined in order of earnings.
This year’s contenders that were among the top ten horses voted included: Bellagio Opera (1st), victor of the 2024-25 Osaka Hai (G1, 2,000m) who marked a third in last year’s edition; Regaleira (2nd), Urban Chic (3rd) and Justin Palace (7th), respective winners of the 2024 Arima Kinen, the 2024 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger, G1, 3,000m) and the 2023 Tenno Sho (Spring) (G1, 3,200m); and Sol Oriens (10th), 2023 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas, G1, 2,000m) champion who was runner-up in this race last year.
Other contenders within the top 40 horses voted included 2023 Kikuka Sho victor Durezza (11th), Lord del Rey (25th) and Yoho Lake (26th) who came off a second and a third, respectively, in the Osaka Hai, two-time graded winner Meisho Tabaru (28th), Tenno Sho (Spring) third-place finisher Shonan la Punta (31st), and Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1, 2,400m) runner-up Rousham Park (34th).
Horses that were ranked among the top ten but passed up their entry were: Blow the Horn (JPN, H6, by Epiphaneia; 4th), Danon Decile (JPN, C4, by Epiphaneia; 5th), Cervinia (JPN, F4, by Harbinger; 6th), Redentor (JPN, C4, by Rulership; 8th), and Croix du Nord (JPN, C3, by Kitasan Black; 9th).