Coasted

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 this Sunday running at Tokyo and Niigata Racecourses: Sunday, October 6, 2024 3rd-TOK, ¥13,720,000 ($92k), Newcomers, 2yo, 1600m MALIBU ORANGE (f, 2, Vekoma--Malibu Pier, by Malibu Moon), whose dam won a trio of graded stakes on the turf and was runner-up in the GI...

7th-Fair Grounds, $57,000, Msw, 2-9, 3yo, f, 1 1/16mT, 1:45.97, fm, 3 1/2 lengths. TARNEEMA (f, 3, Kitten's Joy--Mooghareadh, by Malibu Moon) rallied from the clouds after a poor beginning but came up 4 1/4 lengths short of a pair of next-out winners in her debut over course and distance Dec. 31, an effort for which she received a 70 Beyer Speed Figure. Favored at even-money under Florent Geroux, the Shadwell homebred had a mildly better start and found herself mid pack while able to save ground against the fence....

As has been well-documented, Japanese interests have--over the course of many years--accumulated some of the best bloodstock from all corners of the globe, and as evidenced in Riyadh and Dubai in the last couple of months, the Japanese are breeding horses that can compete anywhere at any level. Classics season in the island nation kicked off last weekend with the running of the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas), with the colts' equivalent--the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas)--set for this weekend at Nakayama Racecourse. The 3-year-old offspring of some...

Twelve months ago, Efforia (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}) posted an authoritative success in the G3 Kyodo News Service Hai en route to a victory in the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) and ultimately Japanese Horse of the Year honours. While it remains to be seen whether Danox Inc.'s Danon Beluga (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) can ascend to similar heights, the bay colt stamped himself as one to watch with a 1 1/2-length defeat of narrowly favoured Geoglyph (Jpn) (Drefong) in Sunday's 1800-metre test at Tokyo. The third betting choice at...