Satono Aladdin's upset earns him berth in BC Mile

Satono Aladdin, an 11-1 outsider, rallied from off the pace to score an upset win in Sunday’s Grade 1 Yasuda Kinen for turf milers at Tokyo Racecourse, earning an automatic berth to the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Del Mar on Nov. 4.

It was not immediately clear whether Satono Aladdin would be sent to California this fall. In post-race comments, trainer Yasutoshi Ikee said overseas options “are there to be discussed with the owners.”

The $1,817,540 Yasuda Kinen is part of the Breeders’ Cup Win and You’re In program, offering a fees-paid berth to the BC Mile for horses nominated to the Breeders’ Cup program.

Satono Aladdin won his first Grade 1 race in the Yasuda Kinen, which drew a field of 18. Ridden by Yuga Kawada, Satono Aladdin closed from the back of the field to win by a neck over 13-1 Logotype, who won the 2016 Yasuda Kinen and set the pace in Sunday’s race.

Satono Aladdin was timed in 1:31.5 on firm turf.

Red Falx, a 6-1 shot, finished third, beaten a half-length by Satono Aladdin. Isla Bonita, the 5-2 favorite, finished eighth after racing in traffic for part of the race.

There were two shippers from Hong Kong in Contentment and Beauty Only, who were first and second in the Group 1 Champions Mile at Sha Tin on May 7. They finished 10th and sixth in the Yasuda Kinen.

Red Falx and Satono Aladdin were first and ninth in the Group 2 Keio Hai Spring Cup at Tokyo Racecourse on May 13, the first start of the year for Satono Aladdin.

In 2016, Satono Aladdin won the Keio Hai Sprint Cup in May and the Group 2 Swan Stakes in October. A 6-year-old horse by Deep Impact, Satono Aladdin was fourth in the Yasuda Kinen in June and fifth in the Grade 1 Mile Championship in November. He was later seventh in the Hong Kong Mile in December.

Satono Aladdin, who has won 8 of 25 starts for owner Hajime Satomi, is out of Magic Storm, a Storm Cat mare who won the Grade 2 Monmouth Breeders’ Cup Oaks in 2002.