Nonkono Yume (Jpn) (Twining) sprang a mild upset in Sunday's G1 February S., a 'Win and You're In' contest for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic, in the process lowering the colours of G1 Dubai World Cup aspirant Gold Dream (Jpn) (Gold Allure {Jpn}) under Ryan Moore.
Gold Dream was making his first start since taking the G1 Champions Cup on Dec. 3. He was off a step slow and so too was Nonkono Yume, and the latter tacked onto the back of the favourite as they raced near the rear of the pack down the backstretch. Nonkono Yume tracked Gold Dream four wide around the turn as they began to pick off rivals, and as they straightened for home Gold Dream looked a likely winner, charging down the middle of the track with gusto as jockey Hiroyuki Uchida went to a drive aboard Nonkono Yume. The favourite began to shorten his stride, however, when he hit the lead passing the 200 and Nonokono Yume came flying down the outside and Incantation (Jpn) (Sinister Minister) on the inside. Gold Dream battled back but Nonkono Yume was game, hitting the line a neck in front.
Sunday, Tokyo, Japan
FEBRUARY S.-G1, ¥194,860,000, Tokyo, 2-18, 4yo/up, 1600m, 1:36.00, gd.
1–NONKONO YUME (JPN), 126, g, 6, by Twining
1st Dam: Nonko (Jpn), by Agnes Tachyon (Jpn)
2nd Dam: Lady Tycoon (Jpn), by Criminal Type
3rd Dam: Buper Dance, by Lyphard
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. O-Kazumasa Yamada; B-Shadai Farm;
T-Yukihiro Kato; J-Hiroyuki Uchida; ¥103,402,000. Lifetime
Record: 21-8-4-1. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Gold Dream (Jpn), 126, h, 5, Gold Allure (Jpn)–Mon Vert
(Jpn), by French Deputy. O-Katsumi Yoshida; B-Northern Farm;
¥40,972,000.
3–Incantation (Jpn), 126, h, 8, Sinister Minister–Original Spin
(Ire), by Machiavellian. O-Turf Sport Inc; B-Tanikawa Farm;
¥25,486,000.
Margins: NK, NK, 3. Odds: 9.70, 1.10, 19.00.
Also Ran: Sunrise Nova (Jpn), Let's Go Donki (Jpn), King's Guard (Jpn), Meisho Sumitomo (Jpn), Sound True (Jpn), Awardee, Best Warrior, K T Brave (Jpn), T M Jinsoku (Jpn), Nobo Baccara (Jpn), London Town (Jpn), Lalabel (Jpn), Nishiken Mononofu (Jpn).
Click for the JRA chart and video.
Prior to this year, Nonkono Yume was riding a 10-race losing streak dating back to December 2015. Those did include defeats by some of the country's top dirt runners, however, and the 6-year-old redeemed himself in January with a win in the G3 Negishi S. off a ninth behind Gold Dream in the Champions Cup.
“The staff tuned him up beautifully and he was in very good form,” said jockey Hiroyuki Uchida. “I kept him wide and in good striking position so that he could unleash his good late charge at any point, which is probably the reason why we were able to win today.”
Pedigree Notes…
While Nonkono Yume is the first Group 1 winner under his first two dams, his family traces back to the standout racehorse and sire Heart's Cry (Jpn) (Sunday Silence), with the American champion sprinter and dual Group 1 producer My Juliet (Gallant Romeo) appearing under the fourth dam. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
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