Japan: Efforia takes on established stars in Autumn Tenno Sho
Efforia, a nose away from an undefeated record in five starts, will race against older horses for the first time in Sunday’s Grade 1 autumn running of the Tenno Sho at Tokyo Racecourse in Japan.
The $2.55 million Tenno Sho, run at 1 1/4 miles, will provide a proper test as to where Efforia fits in the overall list of Japanese runners in advance of other major stakes such as the Japan Cup on Nov. 28 and the Arima Kinen on Dec. 26.
Efforia won the Grade 1, Japanese 2000 Guineas at 1 1/4 miles at Nakayama Racecourse in April and was beaten a nose when second in the Grade 1 Japanese Derby at 1 1/2 miles at Tokyo Racecourse on May 30 in his most recent start.
Trained by Yuichi Shikato, Efforia must beat well-established runners such as the 5-year-old mare Gran Alegria and 4-year-old colt Contrail in the Tenno Sho.
“He’s a challenger and that feels quite different from the derby,” Shikato told Japan Racing Association publicists.
Contrail won the 2020 Japanese Triple Crown and was later second in the Japan Cup. This year, Contrail has had one start, finishing third as the favorite in the Grade 1 Osaka Hai at 1 1/4 miles on yielding turf at Hanshin Racecourse in April.
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Trainer Yoshito Yahagi said he considered scratching Contrail because of the conditions. The colt emerged from the race “poorly,” which led to a lengthy layoff, Yahagi said.
Gran Alegria was fourth in the Osaka Hai, her only career start at 1 1/4 miles, and followed that with her fifth career win in a Grade 1 in the Victoria Mile in May. The Osaka Hai will be Gran Alegria’s first start since a second in the Grade 1 Yasuda Kinen at a mile in early June. She underwent a throat operation during the summer.
“She has speed but I’d like to see if she has the speed to conquer” 1 1/4 miles, trainer Kazuo Fujisawa said.
The Tenno Sho will be run at 2:40 a.m. Eastern on Sunday, or 11:40 p.m. Pacific on Saturday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.