By Daithi Harvey
Aerolithe (Jpn) (Kurofune) stamped herself as a top-class miler when beating the colts in this top-level event for the Classic generation. Breaking smartly from an outside draw, Aerolithe was reined back to dispute a share of fifth by jockey Norihiro Yokoyama and was keen enough, especially racing without adequate cover. She did appear to win the battle with her rider as she swooped past the field four wide just after the halfway point and turning in to the straight, she was going strongly at the head of affairs. Lesser horses would have cried enough at this stage and as Reino Tesoro (Speightstown) arrived with plenty of momentum, it looked like the filly would have a battle on her hands. However, she lengthened again at the furlong pole to assert close home and win by 1 1/2 lengths with Bom Servico (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}) a further 2 1/2 lengths back in third.
The winning jockey had high hopes for the filly from early in her career and commented, “I felt she had great potential when I first sat on her in training as a 2-year-old. She was in great condition coming into this race and strong.”
Yokoyama continued, “She was a bit too quick out of the gate, but settled nicely without me actually hitting the brakes. She still appears to have a lot more in her and I expect her to be even more powerful in the autumn season.”
This was a first stakes victory for Aerolithe, who made a winning debut over 1400m at Tokyo in June 2016. After a second placing at Nakayama late in the season, she reappeared this year to be bridesmaid twice in a row in a pair of Group 3 events at Nakayama and Tokyo in January and February before running a respectable fifth to Reine Minoru (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}) in the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) at Hanshin Apr. 9. The way she finished her race on Sunday would certainly offer hope to connections that she could handle a further step up in trip.
Pedigree Notes…
The 7-year-old mare Asterix (Jpn) (Neo Universe {Jpn}) was unplaced in one start, but her breeding career has been launched in style with the exploits of her first foal Aerolithe. She is the only one to race thus far of three foals and has been followed in the paddocks by a yearling filly by Lord Kanaloa (Jpn)–who sold to Katsumi Yoshida for A$375,000 from the Arrowfield Stud consignment during this year's Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale in January as lot 642–and a weanling filly by Snitzel (Aus). Their granddam Isle De France (Nureyev) was a graded stakes winner in both France and America and another of her daughters, Star Isle (Ire) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}), is the dam of Mikki Isle (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), the winner of the G1 NHK Mile Cup in 2014 and Champion Sprinter and Miler in Japan in 2016. Third dam Stella Madrid (Alydar) was a brilliant racemare, winning four Grade I races in America and she in turn passed those racing genes onto her daughter Diamond Biko (Jpn) (Sunday Silence) who was champion older mare in Japan in 2002. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
Sunday, Tokyo, Japan
NHK MILE CUP-G1, ¥185,960,000 (US$1,646,396/£1,268,200/€1,493,976), Tokyo, 5-7, 3yo, c/f, 1600mT, 1:32.30, fm.
1–#@&AEROLITHE (JPN), 121, f, 3, by Kurofune
1st Dam: Asterix (Jpn), by Neo Universe (Jpn)
2nd Dam: Isle de France, by Nureyev
3rd Dam: Stella Madrid, by Alydar
O-Sunday Racing; B-Northern Farm; T-Takanori Kikuzawa;
J-Norihiro Yokoyama; ¥98,822,000. Lifetime record: 6-2-3-0.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick
Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*
2–Rieno Tesoro, 121, f, 3, Speightstown–Akilina, by
Langfuhr. ($250,000 Ylg '15 FTNAUG). O-Kenji Ryotokuji; B-Oak
Bluff Stables LLC; ¥39,092,000.
3–Bom Servico (Jpn), 126, c, 3, Daiwa Major (Jpn)–Baimoyuri (Jpn), by Sakura Laurel (Jpn). O-Nagoya
Yuho; B-Shirai Farm; ¥24,546,000.
Margins: 1HF, 2HF, NK; Odds: 4.80, 36.50, 13.40.
Also ran: Red en Ciel (Jpn), All the Go (Jpn), Time Trip (Jpn), Mi Suerte (Jpn), Trust (Jpn), Monde Can Know (Jpn), Divine Code (Jpn), Platina Voice (Jpn), Jo Strictly (Jpn), Outliers (Jpn), Kyohei (Jpn), Taisei Starry (Jpn), Knight Banneret (Jpn), Karakurenai (Jpn), Gun Salute (Jpn). Click for the JRA chart and video, or for the Racing Post result.
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