Café Pharoah (Jpn) (American Pharoah) dispatched his elders with deceptive ease when taking Saturday's 1900-metre G3 Sirius S. at Chukyo. Pounded down to 70 cents on the dollar, the son of 2015 American Triple Crown winner American Pharoah was taking his second Japanese group race.
The favourite settled in midfield while Chimera Verite (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}) opened up several lengths on the chasing pack. Still eighth on the far turn, Café Pharoah swung wide into the homestretch. Fanned out to the centre of the track for the stretch drive, the Koichi Nishikawa colourbearer took dead aim on Sakura Allure (Jpn) (Gold Allure {Jpn}) as Chimera Verite folded and bounded away to win by a length. Sakura Allure was 3/4 of a length to the good of Acorn (Jpn) (Furioso {Jpn}), while Danon Splendor (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) was another 1 1/4 lengths back in fourth.
A winner of a 2-year-old newcomer affair at Nakayama last December, Café Pharoah added the Listed Hyacinth S. at Tokyo this February and the G3 Unicorn S. there in June. He lost his unbeaten record to Danon Pharoah (Jpn) (American Pharoah) when seventh in the slop at Oi in the Listed Dirt Derby on July 8 and was subsequently benched.
Pedigree Notes
Café Pharoah is one of 10 black-type winners and seven at group level for his Ashford Stud-based sire. He shares his damsire More Than Ready with GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint and GIII Futurity S. hero Four Wheel Drive (American Pharoah). GII Mrs. Revere S. and GIII Boiling Springs S. heroine Mary's Follies foaled a colt by Uncle Mo that later died in 2018. She has a yearling colt by Candy Ride (Arg) and a Connect colt of this year born Apr. 16. She was bred back to Curlin. The winner's third dam was a four-time black-type winner on the Louisiana circuit.
Saturday, Chukyo, Japan
SIRIUS S.-G3, ¥68,820,000 (US$653,506/£505,198/€557,831), Chukyo, 10-3, 3yo/up, 1900m, 1:57.80, ft.
1–CAFE PHAROAH, 119, c, 3, American Pharoah
1st Dam: Mary's Follies (MGSW-US, $338,889),
by More Than Ready
2nd Dam: Catch the Queen, by Miswaki
3rd Dam: Wave to the Queen, by Wavering Monarch
($475,000 2yo '19 OBSMAR). O-Koichi Nishikawa; B- Paul P.
Pompa (KY); T-Noryuki Hori; J-Christophe Lemaire.
¥36,574,000. Lifetime Record: 5-4-0-0. *1/2 to Night Prowler
(Giant's Causeway), MGSW-US, $475,682; and Regal Glory
(Animal Kingdom), MGSW-US, $773,884. Werk Nick Rating:
A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Sakura Allure (Jpn), 119, h, 5, Gold Allure (Jpn)–Shiroganese
Cafe, by Gulch. O-Sakura Commerce; B-Tanioka Farm (Jpn);
¥14,164,000.
3–Acorn (Jpn), 121, h, 5, Furioso (Jpn)–Lament (Jpn), by Admire
Moon (Jpn). O-Isao Nishimori; B-Kineusu Saito Farm (Jpn);
¥9,082,000.
Margins: 3/4, 1 1/4, 1HF. Odds: 0.70, 39.50, 55.30.
Also Ran: Danon Splendor (Jpn), Meisho Wazashi (Jpn), Ardore (Jpn), Sunday Wizard (Jpn), M O Glitter (Jpn), Great Time (Jpn), T O Helios (Jpn), Mitsuba (Jpn), Namura Arashi (Jpn), Chimera Verite (Jpn), Daishin Indi (Jpn), Lance of Puraana (Jpn), Daimei Corrida (Jpn).
Click for the JRA chart & video or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
