Equinox Proves A Facile Winner of the Japan Cup

Silk Racing Co. Ltd.’s EQUINOX (JPN) (c, 4, Kitasan Black {Jpn}–Chateau Blanche {Jpn}, by King Halo {Jpn}) cemented his status as one of the greats in the history of the Japanese turf, overhauling loose leader Panthalassa (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) with a little more than a furlong to race in Sunday’s G1 Japan Cup before careering away to score a sixth consecutive Group 1 victory. Triple Tiara winner Liberty Island (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}) couldn’t quite go with the winner in the late stages, but held well for second ahead of 4-year-old filly Stars on Earth (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}), racing first up for six months. The ambitiously placed Panthalassa, the all-the-way winner of the 2022 G1 Saudi Cup whose front-running exploits have often captivated Japanese racegoers, made the running as expected and tore away on the lead, opening up by double digits by the time the field made the backstretch. Going farther clear down the back as Titleholder (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}) raced ‘closest’ to the pacesetter and Equinox and Liberty Island sat third and fourth, respectively, Panthalassa led by as many as 15 to 20 lengths into the final 600 metres and he was still well in front with the long Tokyo straight ahead of him. He was soon running on empty, and Equinox–whose sire won the 2016 Japan Cup–gathered him up, pinched a break and was eased down to score by a space in 2:21.8. French raider Iresine (Fr) (Manduro {Ger}) finished a midfield ninth. It was a fourth Japan Cup for Christophe Lemaire, two of which came aboard Silk Racing’s Almond Eye (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}), and his 49th JRA Group 1 overall. Lifetime Record: G1SW-UAE, 10-8-2-0. O-Silk Racing Co Ltd; B-Northern Farm; T-Tetsuya Kimura.

Sunday, Tokyo, Japan
JAPAN CUP-G1, ¥960,520,000, Tokyo, 11-26, 3yo/up, 2400mT, 2:21.80, gd/fm.
1–EQUINOX (JPN), 128, c, 4, by Kitasan Black (Jpn)
1st Dam: Chateau Blanche (Jpn), by King Halo (Jpn)
2nd Dam: Blancherie (Jpn), by Tony Bin (Ire)
3rd Dam: Maison Blanche (Jpn), by Alleged
O-Silk Racing Co Ltd; B-Northern Farm; T-Tetsuya Kimura; J-Christophe Lemaire; ¥503,864,000. Lifetime Record: Horse of the Year & Ch. 3yo Colt-Jpn, G1SW-UAE, 10-8-2-0, $15,930,022. *1/2 to Weiss Meteor (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}), GSW-Jpn, $820,531. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Liberty Island (Jpn), 119, f, 3, Duramente (Jpn)–Yankee Rose(Aus), by All American (Aus). O-Sunday Racing Co Ltd; B-Northern Farm; ¥201,104,000.
3–Stars on Earth (Jpn), 123, f, 4, Duramente (Jpn)–Southern Stars (GB), by Smart Strike. O-Shadai Race Horse; B-Shadai Farm; ¥130,552,000.
Margins: 4, 1, 3/4. Odds: 0.30, 2.70, 25.60.
Also Ran: Do Deuce (Jpn), Titleholer (Jpn), Danon Beluga (Jpn), Vela Azul (Jpn), Studley (Jpn), Iresine (Fr), Deep Bond (Jpn), Shonan Bashitto (Jpn), Panthalassa (Jpn), Impress (Jpn), Forward Again (Jpn), Win Erfolg (Jpn), Trust Kenshin (Jpn), Chestnut Coat (Jpn), Kurino Megami Ace (Jpn). Click for the JRA chart.