Sunday sees Japan's top older milers line up in the G1 Yasuda Kinen, and the progressive Maurice (Jpn) (Screen Hero {Jpn}) is favored off the back of a win in the G3 Lord Derby Challenge Trophy Apr. 5. That was the 4-year-old's third straight triumph, and he steps up to Group 1 company for the first time here. “His last win and his time indicate he has enough to win a Group 1,” said Atsunori Hashimoto, assistant to trainer Noriyuki Hori. “I don't know if he'll be able to get a run like he's had in his last two races but I'm hoping he'll give us a good showing.”
Six of the last eight winners of the Yasuda Kinen have prepped in a Group 1 race, and one of the few fancies who fits that bill in this year's lineup is Real Impact (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}). The 7-year-old won this four years ago and was last seen finishing second in the G1 Doncaster Mile in Australia after winning the G1 George Ryder S. there Mar. 21.
Vincennes (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) is another who fits the progressive profile. He won four in a row, including the G3 Tokyo Shimbun Feb. 8, before missing out by a head in the G2 Keio Hai Spring Cup–where he ran the fastest final three furlongs–three weeks ago. He should be sharper here with the run under his girth. The 7-year-old Danon Shark (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) seeks his second Group 1, having taken the Mile Championship S. in November, and he was last seen finishing fifth behind Daiwa Maggiore (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}) in the G3 Hankyu Hai Mar. 1.
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