Judging by their ballots, the fans hoped to see a rematch between
That plan worked to perfection for trainer Kunihide Matsuda. Daiwa
With regular rider Katsumi Ando aboard, Daiwa Scarlet, the 5-2
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Ando shrewdly gave Daiwa Scarlet a bit of a breather in the middle stages.
When he asked her to pick it up again turning for home, the chestnut opened up
on her pursuers. Kawakami Princess and Meisho Samson soon bowed out of
contention. Screen Hero and Matsurida Gogh tried to rally while wide on the
turn, but neither came close to threatening the commanding leader.
Instead, it was Admire Monarch (Dream Well [Fr]), the longest shot on the
board at 90-1, who made headway down the center of the course. His bid was still
too little, too late, as Daiwa Scarlet strode home by 1 3/4 lengths and stopped
the clock in 2:31.5 on the firm turf. In the process, she avenged her defeat in
last year’s Arima Kinen, when she settled for runner-up honors to the surprising
Matsurida Gogh.
“I don’t know what to say,” Matsuda said. “I owe it to the staff at my
stable, the jockey, the owner and everyone else involved with ‘Scarlet.’ We lost
the Tenno Sho by just two centimeters, and we came here with a lot to prove.
“Two thousand meters (about 1 1/4 miles) is probably a better distance for
her, but it’s a better distance for other horses as well,” the trainer observed.
“It all starts from the workouts. After the Tenno Sho, our target was to keep
her as loose and relaxed as possible, and I think everyone associated with Daiwa
Scarlet fulfilled his responsibility, in particular the jockey.
“I never said a word to him before the race, but Ando was perfect today. We
had to set a relatively fast pace to the race because if we slowed it down too
much, it would have made it easier for the others. Because the race progressed
pretty fast, the other horses had to work to keep up, and you have to credit
Ando for dictating the race precisely the right way. Last year, Matsurida Gogh
passed us on the final turn to the finish, but at today’s pace, he wasn’t going
to do that.”
“I knew she would find her second wind so I wasn’t the least bit concerned,”
said Ando, the only jockey Daiwa Scarlet has known. “I didn’t get the sense
anyone else was going to take the lead, so she had no problems running at a pace
she liked. I think today’s performance proved once again what a strong horse she
is. I mean, she has never failed to show and that says something about her.”
Admire Monarch had three-quarters of a length to spare over Air Shady (Sunday
Silence) in third, who in turn crossed the wire a nose ahead of Dream Journey
(Stay Gold). Screen Hero was another neck away in fifth. Al Nasrain (Admire
Vega), Kawakami Princess, Meisho Samson, Flotation (Special Week), Venture Nine
(Eishin Sandy), Cosmo Bulk (Zagreb), Matsurida Gogh, Air Zipangu (El Condor Pasa)
and Asakusa Kings (White Muzzle [GB]) rounded out the order of finish.
Daiwa Scarlet now boasts a record of 12-8-4-0 with a bankroll exceeding $6.8
million. She was honored as Japan’s champion three-year-old filly of 2007 after
capturing the Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup (Jpn-G1), Oka Sho (Japanese
One Thousand Guineas), Shuka Sho and the Kansai Telecasting Corp. Sho Rose S. In
both the Oka Sho and Shuka Sho, she defeated Vodka, who had previously just
pipped her in the Tulip Sho.
Matsuda eyed a raid on Dubai last March, but Daiwa Scarlet suffered a minor
eye injury in training and had to miss her engagement at Nad al Sheba. She made
her four-year-old debut in the Sankei Osaka Hai (Jpn-G2) versus older males and
duly won in wire-to-wire fashion. Unfortunately, she then came up with a splint
injury and did not race again until the aforementioned Tenno Sho Autumn. Despite
her seven-month layoff, and the scorching pace she carved out, she was just
barely outdueled by the in-form Vodka.
Bred by Shadai Farm in Japan, the winner is out of the multiple Japanese Grade 3 queen Scarlet Bouquet (Northern Taste). Daiwa Scarlet is a three-quarter sister to multiple Japanese champion Daiwa
Major (Sunday Silence), whose conquests include the Satsuki Sho (Japanese Two
Thousand Guineas), Tenno Sho Autumn, Yasuda Kinen (Jpn-G1) and two runnings of
the Mile Championship (Jpn-G1). Daiwa Scarlet is also a three-quarter sister to
Japanese Grade 3 victress and classic-placed Daiwa Rouge (Sunday Silence), and a
half-sister to stakes-placed Scarlet Mail (Tony Bin). This is the family of
Japan Cup Dirt (Jpn-G1) star Vermilion (El Condor Pasa), who was a close third
when trying to defend his title last time out.
An international campaign is once again in the offing for Daiwa Scarlet.
“I haven’t gotten the owner’s permission yet, but speaking strictly from a
trainer’s standpoint, I would like to try her overseas,” Matsuda said. “We
haven’t decided where, when and which race yet, but we want to put her up
against the best horses in the world.”