Ho O Biscuits hopes to better competition in Osaka Hai
With the exception of a ninth-place finish in January, the Japanese veteran Ho O Biscuits has finished in the top three in seven races since the beginning of 2024, a record that is even better than it looks.
After the loss in January, Ho O Biscuits finished second by a nose in the Grade 2 Kiko Sho at 1 1/4 miles at Chukyo Racecourse on March 16 as the favorite. The narrow defeat leaves Ho O Biscuits as a contender in Sunday’s Grade 1 Osaka Hai at 1 1/4 miles at Hanshin Racecourse, the year’s first Grade 1 turf race in Japan for distance runners.
In his career, Ho O Biscuits, a 5-year-old by Mind Your Biscuits, has won 4 of 14 starts, including a Grade 3 at 1 1/4 miles last summer. In the $3.93 million Osaka Hai, Ho O Biscuits is likely to race toward the front in a tough field of 15.
The 4-year-old filly Stellenbosch, winner of the Grade 1 Japanese Guineas last April, will have her first start in the Osaka Hai since a third in the Hong Kong Vase at 1 1/2 miles in Hong Kong in December.
Sixpence, a 4-year-old colt, starts with high expectations after a win in the Grade 2 Nakayama Kinen at 1 1/8 miles on March 2, his fifth win in six starts. His only loss was a ninth-place finish in a field of 17 in the Grade 1 Japanese Derby last May.
The Osaka Hai will be the first start of the year for Bellagio Opera and Justin Palace, who were fourth and fifth in the Grade 1 Arima Kinen in December, arguably Japan’s toughest race for older horses.
Bellagio Opera won the 2024 Osaka Hai but has been beaten in his last three starts. He tends to run as a stalker and could be well-positioned to challenge Ho O Biscuits in the final quarter-mile.
The Osaka Hai has a post time of 2:40 a.m. Eastern on Sunday.
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