Tokyo: Apapane looks solid in Yasuda Kinen

Champion filly Apapane should be solidly favored to win the Group 1, $2.57 million Yasuda Kinen on Sunday at Tokyo Racecourse in Japan. In her most recent start, the Victoria Mile on May 15, Apapane beat top-class Buena Vista by a neck, and there appears to be no horse of that quality among her rivals Sunday.

Apapane, a 4-year-old by King Kamehameha, has won 7 of her 12 career starts, and never has lost in four races over the left-handed course at Tokyo. At her best at about about one mile, Apapane has a powerful late run that should propel her to victory in Sunday’s 1,600-meter race.

Silport and Strong Return both enter the Yasuda Kinen in good form, but neither has produced top performances at Apapane’s level.

– Marcus Hersh