Preserving his unbeaten record in a determined display at Chukyo on Sunday, Chrysoberyl (Jpn) (Gold Allure {Jpn}) ground out victory by a neck in the G1 Champions Cup over 2017 winner Gold Dream (Jpn) (Gold Allure {Jpn}) in a new track record of 1:48.50 for the 1800 metres. It was his first attempt at group company after five straight dirt wins, the last three at the listed level: the May 2 Hyogo Championship in the slop, the Japan Dirt Derby going 2000 metres at Ohi, and in the 1800-metre Nippon TV Hai at Funabashi on Sept. 23.
Sent off at 3-1 as the second choice behind 5-2 favourite Gold Dream, Chrysoberyl was steered straight to the rail by Yuga Kawada. On the engine from the bell, Inti (Jpn) (Came Home) cut out fractions of :24.1 for the first quarter mile and :48.70 for the half, but began to feel the heat as the pace quickened in the second half of the race. Kawada shifted Chrysoberyl off the inside for the stretch drive, but 200 metres from home, it was Gold Dream who appeared to have all of the momentum coming up the outside. Inti finally tired with 50 metres to travel, while the Carrot Farm colourbearer battled with Gold Dream for the spoils in between horses. He prevailed by a neck, with Gold Dream defeating Inti by 1 1/4 lengths.
Pedigree Notes
Chrysoberyl becomes the fifth Group 1 winner for his sire Gold Allure, who has 11 group winners from 25 black-type winners to date. The last know foal of his winning dam, he follows in the hoofsteps of his full-brother Chrysolite (Jpn), a foal of 2010, who also won the Japan Dirt Derby and Nippon TV Hai, while placing twice at the Group 3 level in Japan. After producing Chrysolite as her second foal, Chrysoprase came up with Japanese champion older mare Marialite (Jpn) to the cover of Deep Impact (Jpn) (Sunday Silence). Successful in the G1 Takarazuka Kinen and G1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup among her six wins, Marialite (Jpn) was succeeded by Lia Fail (Jpn) (Zenno Rob Roy {Jpn}), a winner of the G2 Kobe Shimbun Hai and third in the G1 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger). All told, Chrysoprase has accounted for four stakes winners and six winners from seven foals to race. Japanese MGSW Danburite (Jpn) (Rulership {Jpn}), who ran third in the G1 Japanese 2000 Guineas, is under the MGSP second dam Catherine Parr (Riverman). Italian champion and MG1SW Esprit du Nord (Lyphard) is a half-brother to Chrysoberyl's third dam, the Irish Oaks heroine Regal Exception (Ribot {GB}).
Sunday, Chukyo, Japan
CHAMPIONS CUP-G1, ¥194,860,000 (US$1,779,566/£1,376,579/€1,615,230), Chukyo, 12-1, 3yo/up, 1800m, 1:48.50 (NTR), gd.
1–CHRYSOBERYL (JPN), 121, c, 3, Gold Allure (Jpn)
1st Dam: Chrysoprase (Jpn), by El Condor Pasa
2nd Dam: Catherine Parr, by Riverman
3rd Dam: Regal Exception, by Ribot (GB)
1ST GROUP WIN. 1ST GROUP 1 WIN. O-Carrot Farm;
B-Northern Farm (Jpn); T-Hidetaka Otonashi; J-Yuga Kawada.
¥103,420,000. Lifetime Record: 6-6-0-0. *Full to MSW &
MGSP-Jpn, $3,394,676; and a half to Marialite (Jpn) (Deep
Impact {Jpn}), Ch. Older Mare-Jpn, MG1SW-Jpn, $3,717,679;
and Lia Fail (Jpn) (Zenno Rob Roy {Jpn}), GSW & G1SP-Jpn,
$1,249,781. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Gold Dream (Jpn), 126, h, 6, Gold Allure (Jpn)–Mon Vert
(Jpn), by French Deputy. O-Katsumi Yoshida; B-Northern Farm
(Jpn); ¥40,972,000.
3–Inti (Jpn), 126, h, 5, Came Home–Kitty (Jpn), by Northern
Afleet. O-Shigeo Takeda; B-Kiyoshige Yamashita (Jpn);
¥25,486,000.
Margins: NK, 1 1/4, HF. Odds: 3.40, 2.50, 3.70.
Also Ran: Chuwa Wizard (Jpn), King's Guard (Jpn), Omega Perfume (Jpn), Vengence (Jpn), Time Flyer (Jpn), Westerlund (Jpn), London Town (Jpn), Wonder Lider (Jpn), Mozu Attraction (Jpn), Mitsuba (Jpn), Wide Pharaoh (Jpn), Satono Titan (Jpn), T O Energy (Jpn).
Click for the JRA chart or video or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
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