Breeders' Cup: A rare Christophe Lemaire sighting in Classic

ARCADIA, Calif. – For all that he has accomplished in his native France and these days in Japan, jockey Christophe Lemaire is a rare sight at an American racetrack.

Lemaire has not won a race in this country since Flotilla in the 2012 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita. He has had only four mounts on three racing days in the last 11 years on these shores.

Lemaire finished sixth in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 6 with Derma Sotogake, and that colt is the main reason he is back in the United States. He has two mounts on Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup program at Santa Anita. Derma Sotogake is a 20-1 outsider in the Classic for Lemaire, who also rides the 20-1 longshot A Mo Reay in the Distaff.

Lemaire has ridden Derma Sotogake in his last two starts, beginning with an easy win by 5 1/2 lengths in the Group 2 United Arab Emirates Derby at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai on March 25.

The win secured a berth in the Kentucky Derby for Derma Sotogake, who closed from 14th in a field of 18 to finish sixth, eight lengths behind Mage.

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Derma Sotogake, a winner of 4 of 9 starts, has not raced since the Kentucky Derby.

“He’s in very good shape,” Lemaire said trackside on Wednesday morning. “I think he’ll do well. Of course, he hasn’t run since the Kentucky Derby and this is a negative point.

“He’s very happy here at Santa Anita. I worked him about three weeks ago. He was still a bit fat. Now he’s shaped up.

“He looks brilliant. He did run well in the Kentucky Derby to run sixth in his first experience in America in such a tough race.”

Trained by Hidetaka Otonashi, Derma Sotogake will need a peak performance to beat such leading contenders as the 3-year-old Arabian Knight, the well-regarded Japanese older horse Ushba Tesoro, or the established American older horses Bright Future, White Abarrio, and Zandon.

“There are good horses in there, but no champions like Flightline or Arrogate or Zenyatta,” Lemaire said. “It’s a very open race.

“I think he can be in the first three if he runs to the same form from Dubai and the same form in running, close to the pace. I think he can be a factor.”

As for A Mo Reay, Lemaire will ride the three-time stakes winner for the first time in the Distaff. A Mo Reay has course experience, having won the Grade 1 Beholder Mile for fillies and mares here in March under jockey Flavien Prat.

Lemaire said he may lean on his fellow Frenchman in Prat for clues on A Mo Reay’s abilities.

“I don’t know her,” Lemaire said with a smile. “Flavien knows her.”

Lemaire, 44, has been a fixture in the top five at Japan Racing Association tracks since 2014 and was leading rider by wins for five seasons from 2017 through 2021. After finishing fifth in the standings in 2022, Lemaire ranks first this year through Wednesday with 137 wins, five more than Yuga Kawada, who is also riding Breeders’ Cup races this weekend.

Lemaire is the regular rider of the global superstar Equinox, who won his fifth consecutive Grade 1 or Group 1 race last Sunday in the autumn running of the $2.8 million Tenno Sho at Tokyo Racecourse, setting a 2,000-meter course record of 1:55.20 on good-to-firm turf.

Earlier this year, Equinox and Lemaire easily won the Group 1 Sheema Classic in Dubai, his only start outside of Japan during the current winning streak.

The win in the Tenno Sho last weekend captured the attention of racing fans worldwide.

“It looks easy for him,” Lemaire said. “Oh, it’s easy, but he’s exceptional. It’s because he’s all class.”

Equinox’s next start is scheduled for the Grade 1 Japan Cup at 1 1/2 miles on turf at Tokyo Racecourse on Nov. 26. Lemaire has won the Japan Cup three times, including in 2018 and 2020 with the brilliant mare Almond Eye.

This year, the Japan Cup has a purse of $7.1 million, but for Equinox it could be considerably more valuable. Because of his win in the Sheema Classic, Equinox is eligible for a $3 million bonus if he wins the Japan Cup.

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