Mikki Queen sets track record in Shuka Sho

Mikki Queen, winner of the Japanese Oaks in May, won her second major stakes for 3-year-old fillies in Japan in Sunday’s $1,548,614 Shuka Sho at Kyoto Racecourse, a win that solidified her status as the leader of the division.

Ridden by Suguru Hamanaka for trainer Yasutoshi Ikee, Mikki Queen, the 2-1 favorite, set a track record of 1:56.90 for about 1 1/4 miles on turf. Mikki Queen raced in midpack before overcoming a touch of trouble on the turn. Mikki Queen took the lead in the final sixteenth and won by a neck over the 13-1 Queens Ring.

Maximum de Paris (29-1) finished third.

Mikki Queen, by Deep Impact, has won 4 of 7 starts for owner Mizuki Noda. After her win in the Japanese Oaks, Mikki Queen was second in the Grade 2 Rose Stakes at Hanshin on Sept. 20. The win in the Shuka Sho opens the possibility that Mikki Queen could take on older males in the Japan Cup at Tokyo Racecourse on Nov. 29.