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Gran Alegria Defends Mile Championship Title in Final Career Start

3 minute read

Gran Alegria wins this year’s Mile Championship at Hanshin.

GRAN ALEGRIA winning the Mile Championship at Hanshin in Japan.
GRAN ALEGRIA winning the Mile Championship at Hanshin in Japan. Picture: Japan Racing Association

Race favorite Gran Alegria successfully defended her Mile Championship title to become the first back-to-back winner since Daiwa Major (2006-07) and sixth overall. The classy daughter of Deep Impact ended her stellar racing career which saw her win six G1 titles—she won the Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) as a three-year-old; the Yasuda Kinen, the Sprinters Stakes and the Mile Championship when four; the Victoria Mile and the Mile Championship this year as a five-year-old—while also becoming the sixth female runner to exceed a career earning of ¥1.0 billion. Trainer Kazuo Fujisawa scored his 34th JRA-G1 victory—his first since the Victoria Mile with Gran Alegria—while the Mile Championship title was the sixth after with Shinko Lovely (1993), Taiki Shuttle (1997, 98), Zenno El Cid (2001) and Gran Alegria (2020), rewriting his own record for most Mile Championship titles won. Jockey Christophe Lemaire who also enjoyed consecutive Mile Championship victories along with Gran Alegria was last seen winning a G1 title in the Takarazuka Kinen with Chrono Genesis and has today reached a duo of milestones of 40 JRA-G1 victories and 1,500 JRA wins.

Gran Alegria was unhurried early and was rated a little further back than mid-division and just off the rails behind a slower than moderate pace led by Ho O Amazon. Making headway between horses from the 600-meter marker, the Deep Impact mare was angled out rounding the final turn for a clear path. While still having to make up ground along the widest lane, the multiple-G1 winner responded beautifully, edged closer with each stride and exploded into gear with a sharp turn of speed that timed 32.7 seconds in the last three furlongs to cross the wire by a 3/4 length margin.

"I am relieved and happy. The most important mission for me in her last run of her career was to bring out the best performance, her true form and she did just that. We were positioned a little further back but it didn't worry me much and she has this really good finishing speed at the stretch like she showed today. She's been a special horse since a two-year-old, winning all those big races and today she showed us again that she's of a different class. I will miss her," commented Christophe Lemaire.

Schnell Meister was sharp out of the gate and eased back to mid-field while saving ground along the rails, was caught behind horses at early stretch and was angled out slightly before the Kingman colt picked up to join the eventual winner to rally for the lead passing the furlong pole, overtaking the tired early leaders on the inside and holding gamely for second while missing by less than a length.

Danon the Kid broke smoothly from gate 13 and moved up to along the outside to sit three-wide in mid-division. The Just a Way colt made his move as the eventual winner passed by on his outside and while Gran Alegria shifted further out rounding the final turn, Danon The Kid pushed his way between horses and turned in a sharp turn of speed that was still not good enough to deter Gran Alegria on his outside and Schnell Meister on the inside but enough to out-rally the rest for third place.

Other Horses:

4th: (7) Indy Champ—hugged rails around 5th, rallied for lead, held on well while overtaken by top finishers
             before wire
5th: (1) Ho O Amazon—set pace and led until 300m out, remained in contention, weakened in last 100m
6th: (4) Salios—settled around 3rd, took a command 300m out, weakened in last 100m
7th: (8) Darlington Hall—sat around 10th, responded well but lacked needed kick in last 200m
8th: (5) Sound Chiara—traveled around 5th, showed effort up to 200m marker
9th: (11) Catedral—was off a slow, ran around 14th, circled wide, lacked needed kick
10th: (6) Cadence Call—saved ground around 13th, angled out, showed belated charge
11th: (16) Rainbow Flag—trailed in rear, passed tired rivals at stretch
12th: (10) Lotus Land—settled 4-wide around seventh, checked 200m out, never threatened
13th: (9) Grenadier Guards—chased leaders around 3rd, ran gamely up to 200m marker, fell back
14th: (2) Kurino Gaudi—tracked leader in 2nd, faded after 200m pole
15th: (14) Ripresa—raced 3-wide around 10th, never fired at stretch
16th: (15) Sound Kanaloa—traveled 3-wide near rear, no factor


Japan Racing Association

Hanshin

Sunday, 21st November 2021

11
15:40
(local)

THE MILE CHAMPIONSHIP (G1)

Age: 3yo and up Type: OPEN
JPY ¥252,920,000
1600m TURF GOOD
11
15:40
(local)
JPY ¥252,920,000
1600m GOOD

THE MILE CHAMPIONSHIP (G1)

Age: 3yo and up Type: OPEN


FP Silk Horse, Age & Sex
Sire & Dam
Jockey
Trainer
SP
WT
1st 12. GRAN ALEGRIA (JPN) 5yo M
DEEP IMPACT (JPN) - TAPITSFLY (USA)
CHRISTOPHE LEMAIRE
K FUJISAWA
$1.7
55kg
Sunday Racing Co. Ltd.
2nd 3. SCHNELL MEISTER (GER) 3yo C
KINGMAN (GB) - SERIENHOLDE (GER)
TAKESHI YOKOYAMA
T TEZUKA
$4.6
56kg
Sunday Racing Co. Ltd.
3rd 13. DANON THE KID (JPN) 3yo C
JUST A WAY (JPN) - EPIC LOVE (IRE)
YUGA KAWADA
TAKAYUKI YASUDA
$16.1
56kg
Danox Co. Ltd.
4th 7. INDY CHAMP (JPN) 6yo H
STAY GOLD (JPN) - WILL POWER (JPN)
Y FUKUNAGA
H OTONASHI
$16.7
57kg
5th 1. HO O AMAZON (JPN) 3yo C
KING KAMEHAMEHA (JPN) - HIKARU AMARANTHUS (JPN)
RYUSEI SAKAI
Y YAHAGI
$31.5
56kg
6th 4. SALIOS (JPN) 4yo H
HEART'S CRY (JPN) - SALOMINA (GER)
KOHEI MATSUYAMA
N HORI
$9.5
57kg
7th 8. DARLINGTON HALL (GB) 4yo H
NEW APPROACH (IRE) - MISS KENTON (IRE)
R WADA
TETSUYA KIMURA
$57.7
57kg

Sales Information

8th 5. SOUND CHIARA (JPN) 6yo M
DEEP IMPACT (JPN) - SOUND BARRIER (JPN)
YUTAKA TAKE
AKIO ADACHI
$65.9
55kg
9th 11. CATEDRAL (JPN) 5yo H
HEART'S CRY (JPN) - ABYLA (GB)
K TOSAKI
Manabu Ikezoe
$35.2
57kg
10th 6. CADENCE CALL (JPN) 5yo H
LORD KANALOA (JPN) - INDUCTEE (JPN)
Y IWATA
TAKAYUKI YASUDA
$83.7
57kg
11th 16. RAINBOW FLAG (JPN) 8yo H
JUNGLE POCKET (JPN) - RAINBOW SEEKER (JPN)
RYOYA KOZAKI
K KOZAKI
$326.9
57kg
12th 10. LOTUS LAND (USA) 4yo F
POINT OF ENTRY (USA) - LITTLE MISS MUFFET (USA)
HIRONOBU TANABE
YASUYUKI TSUJINO
$48.5
55kg
13th 9. GRENADIER GUARDS (JPN) 3yo C
FRANKEL (GB) - WAVELL AVENUE (CAN)
K IKEZOE
MITSUMASA NAKAUCHIDA
$10.1
56kg
14th 2. KURINO GAUDI (JPN) 5yo H
SCREEN HERO (JPN) - KURINO BILLIONAIRE (JPN)
MIRAI IWATA
N FUJISAWA
$175
57kg
15th 14. RIPRESA (JPN) 3yo C
LEONTES (JPN) - SOUTH EMPIRICAL (JPN)
H MIYUKI
H ONEDA
$159.2
56kg
16th 15. SOUND KANALOA (JPN) 5yo H
LORD KANALOA (JPN) - MIDNIGHT DANCE (JPN)
KOUTA FUJIOKA
AKIRA MURAYAMA
$308.9
57kg

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