'Black' Bows Out on Top

The third time proved the charm for Japanese Horse of the Year Kitasan Black (Jpn) (Black Tide) in the G1 Arima Kinen at Nakayama on Sunday. Third and second in the past two years, respectively, the dark bay, who races for singer Saburo Kitajima's Ono Shoji Inc., earned his seventh JRA Group 1 victory, tying the Japanese record also held by Symboli Rudolf (Jpn) (Partholon {Ire}), T.M. Opera O (Jpn) (Opera House {GB}), Deep Impact (Jpn) (Sunday Silence), and Vodka (Jpn) (Tanino Gimlet {Jpn}). He will retire to Shadai Stallion Station in 2018.

Voted favourite by racing fans for the second consecutive year, the 4-5 chalk settled in his customary frontrunning position first time past the packed stands of 100,720. Going easily with ears pricked into the backstretch, Yutaka Take appeared full of confidence as the field neared the final 600 metres. Inside the 200-metre mark, it was all the Kitasan Black show, as the 5-year-old quickly opened up on the field and held on to win by 1 1/2 lengths, as closers ate away at his winning margin. It was tight for second and third, as Queens Ring (Jpn) (Manhattan Cafe {Jpn}) nipped Cheval Grand (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) by a nose for second. Suave Richard (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) was a neck back in fourth.

“He ran a great race,” said Take, who was winning his 75th Group 1 and third Arima Kinen. “I just concentrated on letting him run his race, so there'd be no regrets. I was going to decide on the pace depending on his start, but he broke really wel, so I let him take the front without hesitation.”

The Arima Kinen was Kitasan Black's seventh Group 1 win in 20 career starts. A winner of the G1 Japanese St. Leger in 2015, Kitasan Black kicked off 2017 with victories in the Apr. 2 G1 Osaka Hai and in the G1 Tenno Sho (Spring) (his second) at the end of the month. A rare unplaced effort followed in Hanshin's G1 Takarazuka Kinen in June, before the Hisashi Shimizu charge bounced back with a score in the G1 Tenno Sho (Autumn) on Oct. 29. Sunday's rival Cheval Grand took the G1 Japan Cup with Kitasan Black only third on Nov. 26.

Pedigree Notes…

One of seven black-type winners by champion Japanese sire Deep Impact (Jpn) (Sunday Silence)'s full-brother Black Tide (Jpn), Kitasan Black is out of the unraced Sugar Heart (Jpn) (Sakura Bakushin O {Jpn}), who has a yearling filly by Victoire Pisa (Jpn) and a weanling full-brother to the winner. Older half-brother Shonan Bach (Jpn) (Stay Gold {Jpn)'s best showing is a third in the G2 American Jockey Club Cup, while Kitasan Black's second dam is a half-sister to U.S. GISP and solid American sire Cee's Tizzy (Relaunch). That late California stallion's best progeny is two-time GI Breeders' Cup Classic victor, Horse of the Year and successful sire Tiznow. Farther back, Kitasan Black's fourth dam is MGISW Tizna (Chi) (Trevieres {Fr}). Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

Sunday, Nakayama, Japan
ARIMA KINEN-G1, ¥574,800,000 (US$5,072,257/£37,92,681/€4,275,323), Nakayama, 12-24, 3yo/up, 2500mT, 2:33.60, fm.
1–KITASAN BLACK (JPN), 128, h, 5, by Black Tide (Jpn)
                1st Dam: Sugar Heart (Jpn), by Sakura Bakushin-O (Jpn)
                2nd Dam: Otome Gokoro (Jpn), by Judge Angelucci
                3rd Dam: Tizly, by Lyphard
O-Ono Shoji Inc.; B-Yanagawa Farm; T-Hisashi Shimizu;
J-Yutaka Take; ¥303,360,000. Lifetime Record: HotY & Ch.
Older Horse-Jpn, MG1SW-Jpn, 20-12-2-4, $16,575,955. *1/2 to
Shonan Bach (Jpn) (Stay Gold {Jpn}), GSP-Jpn, $830,042. Click
   for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick Rating:
   A++.
2–Queens Ring (Jpn), 121, m, 5, by Manhattan Cafe (Jpn)–Aqua
Ring (Jpn), by Anabaa. O-Chizu Yoshida; B-Shadai Farm (Jpn);
¥120,960,000.
3–Cheval Grand (Jpn), 126, h, 5, Heart's Cry (Jpn)–Halwa Sweet
(Jpn), by Machiavellian. O-Kazuhiro Sasaki; B-Northern Farm
(Jpn); ¥75,480,000.
Margins: 1HF, NO, NK; Odds: 0.90, 32.10, 5.70.
Also Ran: Suave Richard (Jpn), Rouge Buck (Jpn), Sciacchetra (Jpn), Sounds of Earth (Jpn), Rainbow Line (Jpn), Satono Chronicle (Jpn), Yamakatsu Ace (Jpn), Mikki Queen (Jpn), Bless Journey (Jpn), Satono Crown (Jpn),  Tosen Victory (Jpn), Curren Mirotic (Jpn),  Sakura Empereur (Jpn).
Click for the Racing Post chart. JRA Video.