Sweep Tosho capped a remarkable year with another Grade 1 victory on Sunday afternoon, catching Osumi Haruka at the wire to win the 30th Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup.
In front of a turnout of 69,728 on a cloudy day at Kyoto Racecourse, Sweep Tosho beat the pacesetter by half a length to for a 2 minute, 12.5 second win over 2,200 meters-her second G1 title of the year after the Takarazuka Kinen in the early summer.
It was the first QEII win for jockey Kenichi Ikezoe, and the second for trainer Akio Tsurudome.
"It's a load off my shoulders," said the 26-year-old Ikezoe, who picked up his seventh career G1 medallion aboard the second favorite. "This was her third race of the fall, and she was in the best shape yet.
"I knew we couldn't lose to the females. I think the experience she gained racing against the male horses paid off today. If we had lost, it was going to be my fault."
"I'm just pleased with the result," Tsurudome said. "Her form hadn't improved that much since her last run, but she was a lot calmer today. She did a good job of coming out of a jam.
"She was incredible. I thought we were going to have to settle for second place."
The 4-year-old Sweep Tosho dethroned two-time defending champion Admire Groove, who crossed the finish line third two-and-a-half lengths behind the Shinji Kawashima-ridden Osumi Haruka, runner-up in the race for the second consecutive year.
Four-year-old Yamanin Sucre, running for the first time in more than a year, produced a valiant effort, finishing fourth. Favorite Air Messiah, winner of this year's Shuka Sho, the last jewel in the filly's triple crown, came in fifth to fill out the board.
Yutaka Take's bid to win the race for the fifth consecutive year came up short.
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The triple crown jockey, who rode Air Messiah, had won the first of his four straight QEIIs with To the Victory in 2001 and Fine Motion the year after. Admire Groove had won the race the last two years with Take in the saddle.
Britain's 5-year-old Summitville, the lone foreign entry in the full field of 18, was a disappointing 16th.
Kawashima had given Osumi Haruka a lead of seven lengths heading into the flat final straight, but as it turns out, he needed more insurance to hold off Sweep Tosho, who was coming off a fifth-place finish in the autumn Emperor's Cup just a couple of weeks ago.
"For a moment, I thought I had it, but we were up against the wrong horse today," Kawashima said. "(Sweep Tosho) hasn't been competing against the boys for nothing. You have to hand it to her, we lost fair and square today. But it's still a tough loss."
Kawashima was not the only one who thought Osumi Haruka had her first G1 title and the 100 million yen winner's check in the bag.
"When I finally brought her out I think we had 300 meters left," said Ikezoe, whose mount was crammed along the railing during the trip until the home stretch. "It did cross my mind that we might not catch (Osumi Haruka).
"I was absolutely exhausted after the race."
The chief concern for the Sweep Tosho camp was not the competition on this day. The touchy End Sweep filly had refused to warm up on the track before the Emperor's Cup, and needed the help of the stewards to reach the gates.
"I was worried about her getting on the track," said Ikezoe. "But everything went smoothly today."
"We were all laughing up stairs because I was so excited just to see her make it to the gate without any trouble," said Tsurudome, whose horse will head to the pastures until next year. "It's what I was worried about the most."
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