Japan: Mama Cocha noses Mad Cool in Sprinters Stakes

The 4-year-old filly Mama Cocha won for the second time in her last three starts, and in her debut in a Grade 1, in Sunday’s $2.2 million Sprinters Stakes at six furlongs at Nakayama Racecourse in Japan.

Ridden by Yuga Kawada for trainer Yasutoshi Ikee, Mama Cocha ($10.20 in American pools) closed from seventh in a field of 16 to win by a nose after a duel with 14-1 Mad Cool in the final sixteenth.

Mama Cocha rallied wide to reach contention in the stretch. She was the second choice behind 8-5 Namura Clair, who finished third by a length.

“She still has a lot of room for improvement,” Kawada told Japan Racing Association publicists. “I had to be careful in keeping her in good rhythm while she was forced out slightly by pressure from the horses "(on) the inside” on the turn.

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“She did respond well, though, when challenged (in) the straight.”

Mama Cocha, by Kurofune, races for owner and breeder Kaneko Makoto Holdings Co., Ltd. She is a full sister to Sodashi, the champion 2-year-old filly in Japan in 2021.

Mama Cocha, who has won 6 of 13 starts, won a listed seven-furlong race against 17 rivals at Kyoto on May 28. She was second in a Group 3 stakes at six furlongs at Kokura Racecourse on Aug. 20 behind Jasper Krone, a 4-year-old Kentucky-bred colt by Frosted.

Jasper Krone finished fourth in the Sprinters Stakes.

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