By Alan Carasso
In this continuing series, Alan Carasso takes a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for this weekend running at Tokyo and Fukushima Racecourses:
Saturday, November 9, 2024
4th-TOK, ¥10,480,000 ($68k), Maiden, 2yo, 1600m
GOLDEN KITE (c, 2, Tapit–L' Age d'Or, by Medaglia d'Oro) sold to Steven Venosa's SGV Thoroughbreds for $200,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale and made for a nice profit when hammering to trainer Mitsu Nakauchida for $600,000 at this year's OBS March Sale. The Apr. 21 foal's dam is a daughter of GI Humana Distaff Stakes winner Mona de Momma (Speightstown), most notably the dam of dual Grade I winner and top young sire Vekoma (Candy Ride {Arg}). Blandford Bloodstock signed the winning ticket on L' Age d'Or at $600,000 with this foal in utero at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton November Sale. The chestnut has one start under his belt, a sound third going 1800 meters at Chukyo Sept. 28 (see below, SC 9). B-Newstead Corp (KY)
9th-TOK, ¥20,370,000 ($133k), Allowance, 2yo, 1400m
POULSEN (c, 2, Into Mischief–Separationofpowers, by Candy Ride {Arg}) looks to take his record to two wins from as many starts, having crushed a field of newcomers by six lengths going 1200 meters at Niigata Oct. 6. Most recently sold for $925,000 at this year's OBS April sale, the bay is the only foal to make the races to date out of his dam, winner of the GI Frizette Stakes at two and the GI Longines Test Stakes at three who changed hands for $2.1 million at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton November Sale. Poulsen was led out unsold on a bid of $535,000 at Keeneland November in 2022 and fetched $350,000 at Fasig-Tipton Saratoga in the summer of 2023.
Sunday, November 10, 2024
6th-FKS, ¥13,720,000 ($90k), Newcomers, 2yo, 1700m
TSAGAAN SAR (JPN) (f, 2, Not This Time–Mongolian Changa, by Brilliant Speed) is a half-sister to GI Awesome Again Stakes winner, GI Breeders' Cup Classic runner-up and 2021 GI Kentucky Derby first-past-the-post Medina Spirit (Protonico), and was acquired in utero for $1.05 million by Katsumi Yoshida at Fasig-Tipton November three years ago. Like the late Medina Spirit, Tsagaan Sar–who debuts in the Sunday Racing colors–is by a son of Giant's Causeway and Mongolian Changa has produced one foal since her export, a filly by Rey de Oro (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) born this past Apr. 9. B-Shunsuke Yoshida
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.