Third time's a charm for Gold Ship in Tenno Sho

Gold Ship, a fixture in top-class races in Japan for the last three years, won the sixth Grade 1 race of his career in Sunday’s $2,603,993 spring running of the Tenno Sho Stakes at Kyoto Racecourse in Japan.

Gold Ship made his third career appearance in the two-mile Tenno Sho on turf, having finished fifth and seventh in the last two years. On Sunday, Gold Ship was the 7-2 second choice in a field of 17.

Ridden by Norihiro Yokoyama for trainer Naosuke Sugai, Gold Ship was reluctant to load and had to be blindfolded to go into the gate. Once underway, the 6-year-old Gold Ship closed from well off the pace to take the lead in the last 50 yards and edge the 21-1 Fame Game by a neck.

Curren Mirotic, a 29-1 outsider, finished third. Kizuna, the 2-1 favorite who won the 2013 Japanese Derby, finished seventh.

Gold Ship, by Stay Gold, has won 13 of 25 starts and races for Kobayashi Eiichi Holdings. Last fall, Gold Ship was 14th in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in Paris, his only appearance outside of Japan. For his next objective, Gold Ship will be pointed for an unprecedented third consecutive win in the Group 1 Takarazuka Kinen at Hanshin Racecourse on June 28.

Gold Ship won three Grade 1 races in Japan in 2012 – the 2000 Guineas, Japanese St. Leger, and Arima Kinen.

The race was run before an ontrack crowd of 76,776. Handle for the 12-race program was approximately $232.9 million.

Able Friend wins Champions Mile

Able Friend, the standout miler in Hong Kong in the last six months, is likely bound for Royal Ascot in June after a win in Sunday’s $1,814,646 Champions Mile at Sha Tin Racecourse.

The win was the fourth Group 1 success since December for Able Friend, a span of victories that includes the internationally-prominent Hong Kong Mile last December.

In the six-runner Champions Mile, Able Friend, the 1-4 favorite, closed from last to finish 1 1/4 lengths in front of the 8-1 Rewarding Hero. Dan Excel, a 14-1 shot, was third, giving trainer John Moore a sweep of the first three positions.

Able Friend was ridden by Joao Moreira.

“He’s just outstanding,” Moreira said. “He just does everything properly.”

Able Friend, a 5-year-old Australian-bred by Shamardal, races for owner Dr. Cornel Li of Hong Kong. Able Friend is a candidate for the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Ascot on June 16.

Handle for the Sha Tin program reached $185.3 million. The ontrack crowd reached 27,000.