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Triple Crown Orfevre tops All-Star Arima Kinen

Favored above 2010 Horse of the Year Buena Vista who was making her last appearance in the race following her Japan Cup victory, Orfevre turned in a solid performance in claiming this year’s Arima Kinen and standing atop some of the most recognized G1 winners of the season. The Stay Gold colt, who scored one win out of three starts as a two-year-old, was highly successful this season winning five in a row—among which three were the Triple Crown classics—before his first attempt against older G1 company in this race.

His fourth G1 victory of this season was the fifth for trainer Yasutoshi Ikee—the other G1 title being from Tosen Jordan who won the Tenno Sho (Autumn) (G1)—which placed him on the JRA record of trainers with most G1 wins in a single season (record tie). Stablemate To the Glory, ridden by this year’s champion jockey, Yuichi Fukunaga, was third for the second year running while Tosen Jordan finished fifth under Craig Williams. Ikee also saddled Orfevre’s full brother, Dream Journey to victory in the same G1 event in 2009.

All broke smoothly as Earnestly sprinted forward from stall 12 to set the pace. Defending champion Victoire Pisa was close behind in second along the rails while Tosen Jordan was rated outside Buena Vista who saved ground and was forwardly placed than usual by Yasunari Iwata in third or fourth. Eishin Flash, Hiruno d’Amour, and Red Davis formed the following group with To the Glory, King Top Gun, Rose Kingdom, and Jaguar Mail alternating positions in mid-division. Orfevre and Rulership sat in the rear of the field that more or less bunched closed behind a very slow pace that timed 1:03.8 over the first 1,000 meters.

As the race continued at a less than moderate pace approaching the third corner, Kenichi Ikezoe maneuvered Orfevre towards the front along the outside, circling wide into the stretch while showing good acceleration to reach contention 200 meters out as Earnestly and Victoire Pisa, in turn, began to fall back from their early efforts. Eishin Flash, sensing the inexorable drive by the three-year-old chestnut, found another gear to rally briefly for about 100 meters but was unable to match the ever increasing strides of this year’s Triple Crown winner who pulled away for the 3/4-length victory. To the Glory also exerted a good turn of foot in the last 100 meters to quickly close in for third while Rulership scorched down the outside lane from way back, finishing a neck in front of Tosen Jordan in fourth.

Buena Vista was unsuccessful in displaying her usual late charge after traveling right behind the slow pace for most of the way and drowned out of the scene after the furlong pole. Most of the crowd stayed into the chilly evening to pay tribute to her remarkable racing achievements during her retirement ceremony which took place after the last race was over.

Comments by winning jockey, Kenichi Ikezoe:
“The horse was calm entering the track for the post parade, so I knew he would do well. We fell behind a bit at the break and had to race further back on the inside than I had wanted to, but I was able to steer him to the outside in the backstretch. I moved him forward through the third corner, and the colt stretched really well outrunning his rivals in the final stretch. He’s still a young horse―he was born later than the horses of the same age group―but he is growing and getting better day by day.”

Comments from winning trainer Yasutoshi Ikee;
“During the short break he was given after winning the Kikuka Sho, he was able to loosen up and relax. His conditioning went smoothly after returning to the Ritto Training Center and everything went well up to this race. He lost some weight when he arrived here, but I lost all doubts after seeing how he was with my own eyes.
He was off slow and traveled on the rail, but the jockey was able to steer him out in the backstretch and I knew then that he would get the job done. As I’ve said before, we are aiming for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, but are also examining the possibilities of racing him in Dubai in March.”

OTHER HORSES:
6th: (3) Hiruno d'Amour― saved ground in mid-field in backstretch, showed effort but failed to threaten
8th: (2) Victoire Pisa― accelerated to 2nd from slow break, weakened from early effort in last 200m
9th: (13) Red Davis― good start, 5th and 3-wide, lacked needed response in stretch
10th: (12) Earnestly― set extremely slow pace, faded after giving way 200m out
11th: (11) Jaguar Mail― near rear, improved position in mid-pack, met traffic turning for home
12th: (8) Rose Kingdom―never a factor
13th: (6) King Top Gun― failed to reach contention
Scratched: (4) Pelusa— due to a stone bruise on his left-front hoof

THE 56TH ARIMA KINEN (G1)
3-year-old & up, 2,500 meters (about 12-1/2 furlongs), turf, right-handed
Sunday, December 25, 2011   Nakayama Racecourse   10th Race   Post time: 15:25
Total prize money: ¥ 416,000,000 (about US$ 4,894,000 <US$1=¥85>)
3-y-o: 55kg (about 121 lbs), 4-y-o & up: 57kg (about 126 lbs),
2kg allowance for Fillies & Mares, 2kg allowance for Southern Hemisphere Bred born in 2008
Safety factor: 16 runners

1. Orfevre (JPN), chestnut, colt, 3-year-old
   Stay Gold / Oriental Art (Mejiro McQueen)
   

   Breeder: Shadai Corporation Inc.	Owner: Sunday Racing Co.,Ltd.
   Trainer: Yasutoshi Ikee	Jockey: Kenichi Ikezoe
   11 Starts, 7 Wins
   Added money: ¥ 203,024,000	Career earnings: ¥ 818,978,000
   Principal race performances:	’11 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger, G1)	1st
   	’11 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby, G1)	1st
   	’11 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas, G1)	1st
   	’11 Kobe Shimbun Hai (G2)	1st
   	’11 Spring Stakes (G2)	1st

   
   
2. Eishin Flash (JPN), dark bay or brown, colt, 4-year-old
   King’s Best / Moonlady (Platini)
   

   Breeder: Shadai Farm	Owner: Toyomitsu Hirai
   Trainer: Hideaki Fujiwara	Jockey: Christophe Lemaire

   
   
3. To the Glory (JPN), colt, bay, 4-year-old
   King Kamehameha / To the Victory (Sunday Silence)
   

   Breeder: Northern Racing	Owner: U.Carrot Farm
   Trainer: Yasutoshi Ikee	Jockey: Yuichi Fukunaga

* Arima Kinen

Established in 1956 under the name Nakayama Grand Prix, the race was renamed to ARIMA KINEN (Arima Memorial) a year later after the sudden passing of the second JRA president, Yoriyasu Arima. Arima initiated the idea of holding a G1 event at Nakayama Racecourse, where a new grandstand had just been completed at that time, in an attempt to create a race that attracts as much attention as the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) held at Tokyo Racecourse. The ARIMA KINEN was designed to be a season-end Grand Prix, in which the runners were selected by fan poll—an “All-Star” event in Japanese Racing.

Fans could cast their votes by ballots available at JRA racecourses and off-track betting sites, by mail or by online to select the ten most popular runners. The rest of the field is determined in order of earnings.

Foreign runners that won the Japan Cup (G1) became eligible to the race since 2000. Although Falbrav (IRE, by Fairy King) and Alkaased (USA, by Kingmambo) were both invited to run in the 2002 and 2005 ARIMA KINEN, respectively, both horses did not run. In 2007, the race was designated as an international G1 race and opened to up to six foreign entries, though no foreign runners have yet participated in the race. 2011 Arc winner Danedream (GER, by Lomitas) was also registered to run but withdrew the entry soon after finishing sixth in the Japan Cup in November.

This year’s ARIMA KINEN boasted a lineup that included 9 G1 winners—the top fivebeing the following: Buena Vista captured her sixth career G1 victory in this year’s Japan Cup (G1, turf, 2,400m) to rightly claim her place on the top of the list in votes for the ARIMA KINEN. She already stands above recent legends, Vodka (JPN, by Tanino Gimlet) and her sire Special Week (JPN, by Sunday Silence), in career earnings—the only two horses with more total earnings being T.M.Opera O (JPN, by Opera House) and Deep Impact (JPN, by Sunday Silence), winners of the ARIMA KINEN in 2000 and 2006, respectively. The season-end G1 event being announced as her last run before retiring for stud service, 115,065 fans turned up on Christmas day to witness her performance.

Orfevre also came off a terrific three-year-old season, having captured all three classics to become the seventh Triple Crown winner in JRA history—the first since Deep Impact six years back. Victoire Pisa’s historic feat was accomplished abroad in Dubai, where he became the first Japanese runner to claim the Dubai World Cup (G1, AW, 2,000m). Rose Kingdom, who made a last minute withdrawal from the last year’s ARIMA KINEN with colic after his Japan Cup victory in 2010, was fourth in votes coming into this race. Tosen Jordan came off a neck-second in his last start to Buena Vista following his Tenno Sho (Autumn) (G1, turf, 2,000m) victory in record time.

Other starters with G1 titles were Earnestly (’11 Takarazuka Kinen), Eishin Flash (’10 Tokyo Yushun), Jaguar Mail (’10 Tenno Sho (Spring)), and Hiruno d’Amour (’11 Tenno Sho (Spring)).

The race record of 2:29.5 was set by Zenno Rob Roy (JPN, by Sunday Silence) in 2004.