By Alan Carasso
A near-miss runner-up in a controversial running 12 months ago, Isla Bonita (Jpn) (Fuji Kiseki {Jpn}) and Christophe Lemaire have revenge on their minds in a wide-open renewal of the G1 Mile Championship S. Sunday afternoon at Kyoto Racecourse.
The 6-year-old captured his seasonal debut in the G2 Yomiuri Milers' Cup over this track and distance in April, defeating Air Spinel (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) by a half-length, but could not repeat the dose as the 3.5 (5-2) favourite in the G1 Yasuda Kinen in June, finishing eighth to Satono Aladdin (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}). Air Spinel managed to turn the tables when prepping for this in the Oct. 21 G3 Fuji S. at Tokyo, but it was a soft surface on that occasion that may have worked slightly against Isla Bonita.
“The Fuji S. was his first race in four months and he was racing on a sloppy track for the first time,” commented assistant trainer Ryo Sato. “On top of that he had an outside gate. They were very tough conditions. He always improves from a race and he looks to have done so this time, too.”
A leading 2-year-old of 2015, Air Spinel was shut out in five runs last season, but has rediscovered better form in 2017. Ryan Moore has the call. Satono Aladdin belied odds of 11-1 in the Yasuda Kinen and was runner-up to Real Steel (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in a hot renewal of the G2 Mainichi Okan (1800m) two back. His last-place effort in the G1 Tenno Sho (Autumn) (2000m) is a complete toss, as he fails to act over rain-affected turf.
Red Falx (Jpn) (Swept Overboard) is a two-time winner of the G1 Sprinters' S. (1200m), but proved he could be effective at the mile distance with a good third in the Yasuda Kinen. On a somewhat negative note, Cristian Demuro jumps into the saddle to replace his older brother Mirco, who has the call on the 3-year-old Persian Knight (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}). The latter won the G3 Arlington Cup over this trip in February and was a good second in the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) going the metric mile and a quarter. He found the 2400m of the G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) a task too tall when only seventh and he, too, may have been inconvenienced by the underfoot conditions last time when sixth in the Fuji S.
Kluger (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) upset the 2016 Yomiuri Milers Cup, but went missing for a year thereafter. He charged home nicely from the back of the pack to fill third spot in the Fuji S., but can also handle a sound surface and looms an intriguing outsider.
Fully 10 of Sunday's 18 entrants have been nominated to the G1 Longines Hong Kong Mile. Japan's three winners of the latter event–Eishin Preston (2001); Hat Trick (Jpn), 2005; and Maurice (Jpn); 2015–used the Mile Championship as a springboard to success at Sha Tin.
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