By Alan Carasso
In this continuing series, we take 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 Saturday running at Chukyo Racecourse. The weekend's highlight takes place at Tokyo, where recent Group 2 winner Jean Gros (More Than Ready) steps up in grade for the G1 NHK Mile Cup over the metric mile:
Saturday, May 7, 2022
2nd-CKO, ¥9,900,000 ($76k), Maiden, 3yo, 1800m
CORDON ROUGE (f, 3, American Pharoah–Champagne Room, by Broken Vow) is the first foal from her dam, the Eclipse Award-winning filly of her generation in 2016 on the strength of her victory in that year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Filles. Champagne Room was acquired privately by Northern Farm in 2018, foaled this filly Feb. 24, 2019, and was covered by Justify before being exported to Japan. Cordon Rouge, who is inbred 4×3 to 1990 GI Kentucky Derby hero Unbridled, has one start to her credit, a near-miss second going this course and distance Mar. 13 (video, SC 8). The filly's second dam, Lucky to Be Me (Bernstein), was sold to Katsumi Yoshida for $1.25 million in foal to Uncle Mo at Keeneland November in 2017 and is alread the dam of the Group 3-placed Fidele (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}). B-Northern Farm (KY)
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