Fab Four Continues Japan's Extraordinary Run in Riyadh

Yesterday at 02:14 PM

Stop me if you've heard this one before. Japanese-trained runners dominated the Saudi Cup meeting, landing the big race itself and a clean sweep of the turf races, while peppering results elsewhere on the card with placed finishers. 

A little sprinkling of European spice was added to the mix in the French breeding of the G2 Howden Neom Turf Cup winner Shin Emperor (Fr), whose heritage is shared by Christophe Lemaire, rider of the G2 1351 Turf Sprint winner Ascoli Piceno (Jpn) but now just as much a son of Japan as of France. Irish native and British champion jockey Oisin Murphy got in on the act, too, when delivering Byzantine Dream (Jpn) for the turf hat-trick in the G2 Longines Red Sea Turf Handicap, but this was as much as the European raiders could claim credit for as Japan came out on top across the range of distances.

In six years of the Saudi Cup meeting, Japanese horses have now won 50 per cent of the runnings of the 1351 Turf Sprint, Red Sea Turf Handicap, Riyadh Dirt Sprint and Saudi Derby, while the Neom Turf Cup has gone Japan's way twice. Moreover, Forever Young (Jpn) and Panthalassa (Jpn) have struck gold in two of the last three runnings of the G1 Saudi Cup, making Yoshito Yahagi the outstanding trainer of the meeting with six victories to his credit. 

Alan Carasso was on the scene in Riyadh for TDN and has a full report here on the epic Saudi Cup battle between Forever Young and Hong Kong champion Romantic Warrior (Ire). The meeting had started well for Yahagi when he landed the Howden Neom Turf Cup for the first time with Shin Emperor. From first electing to buy the Siyouni (Fr) colt for a sale-topping €2.1 million at Arqana in August 2022, Yahagi, the most intrepid of all the Japanese trainers, hasn't shirked a battle with the perky chestnut. Expectations were high from the outset – after all, Shin Emperor is a full-brother to the Arc and Prix du Jockey Club winner Sottsass (Fr) – and indeed this penultimate foal of the celebrated Ecurie des Monceaux matriarch Starlet's Sister (Ire) has deliverered in each of his three seasons in training to date.

Runner-up to future G1 Arima Kinen winner Regaleira (Jpn) in the G1 Hopeful Stakes at two, Shin Emperor, already a Grade 3 winner on only his second start, went on to run third in last year's G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) before being beaten only a length when third in the G1 Irish Champion Stakes behind Economics (GB) and Auguste Rodin (Ire). He finished last year with yet another high-class performance to be second by a neck in the G1 Japan Cup. 

Gritty is the only way to describe his hard-earned victory in Riyadh. Setting out to make the running, he was pestered most of the way on the lead by Trustyourinstinct (Ire) and, as the chasing pack fanned across the track in the home stretch, Shin Emperor briefly looked under threat of attack from a clutch of European runners. His tenacity could not be matched, however, and Calif (Ger) (Areion {Ger}), the winner of last year's G1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis who has subsequently switched from the Lerner stable to Fawzi Nass, eventually finished best of the rest to take second up the rail from from the Joseph O'Brien-trained fellow Group 1 winner Al Riffa (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}).

“We planned to go to the front,” said Shin Emperor's jockey Ryusei Sakai, whose day would only get better. He added, “I knew I was going to win.”

Yahagi was similarly bullish. “Shin Emperor was definitely the best horse in the field,” he said. “With 200 metres remaining, I was convinced he would win.”

The trainer added that the Dubai Sheema Classic is next on his international wish list for Shin Emperor and it was no surprise to hear that Yahagi is also considering appearances at Ascot and York.

Japan then landed the one-two in the 1351 Turf Sprint when the similarly tough filly Ascoli Piceno (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}) outgunned long-time leader Win Marvel (Jpn) (I'll Have Another) in the dying strides 

Trained by Yoichi Kuroiwa, Ascoli Piceno, a granddaughter of the G1 Fillies' Mile winner Listen (Ire) (Sadler's Wells), was the class act of the field, having landed the G1 Hanshin Juvenile Fillies before finishing second last year in the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas).

“Today the track is very, very fast, so the horse in front was difficult to catch up with, but she battled bravely,” said Christophe Lemaire. “It was a shorter distance than she usually runs over, but she follows easily in a race and today, being fresh, she was straight into a good rhythm and I knew that she was going to produce a great performance.”

Oisin Murphy may not enjoy quite the same level of adulation as that given to Lemaire but he is nonetheless immensely popular with Japanese racing fans after several stints riding in the country and having won the Japan Cup in 2019 aboard Suave Richard (Jpn). His standing is now doubtless greater still after a perfect hold-up ride on Kazumi Yoshida's four-year-old Byzantine Dream (Jpn (Epiphaneia {Jpn}) for what was ultimately a bloodless victory over David O'Meara's fast-finishing Epic Poet (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) and 2023 St Leger winner Continuous (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}), who was the sole Ballydoyle representative at the meeting.

“These are very famous colours and it was great to wear them and get on him,” said Murphy. “He had a good run in the Japanese St Leger, only beaten four lengths, and that was good enough here.

“He has a great turn of foot and I never had to touch his mouth on the run around and that always helps. From the time we went by the winning post the first time, as long as I did everything right, from there he was going to win.”

It all sounds so easy really. Japan's four winners will take home roughly $14 million between them, and with seven of the 17 Japanese-trained runners managing a top-three finish at King Abdulaziz racecourse on Saturday, it's little wonder that confidence continues to run so high. 

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