Japanese champion 3-year-old colt Duramente (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) has done little wrong in his seven-race career and returned to the races off a nine-month injury-induced layoff to capture the G2 Nakayama Kinen Sunday. The Sunday Racing colorbearer found the line a neck to the good of Ambitious (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), with old adversary Real Steel (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) a half-length further behind in third.
Sent off the prohibitive short-priced favourite Sunday, the Noriyuki Hori trainee was caught three deep entering the first bend, but eventually settled in an eager fifth one off the pine just behind the first flight as Chaosmos (Jpn) (Meiner Love) showed the way. Still tugging hard after 1000 metres in :59.4, Duramente hustled up into contention four wide on the final bend, as Last Impact (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) took over from the spent Chaosmos. Duramente surged to the front with a startling rush a few strides later and looked free and clear in midstretch. The hard charging duo of Ambitious and Real Steel had other ideas, however, and shortened the margin considerably at the line.
A jubilant Demuro told Racing Post, “He was excited because this was his first race after a long spell on the sidelines, but he was fast out [of] the stalls and I gained a good position. When I drove him to the front, he sort of idled, but his class got him through. He is so good that he could win anywhere–it would be great to contest some of the top races in the world with him.”
The dual Classic hero is likely headed to Dubai to contest the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic over 2400 metres at Meydan on Dubai World Cup Night Mar. 26. Third-place finisher Real Steel is a possible for the 1800-metre G1 Dubai Turf on the same card.
Second at first asking in an 1800-metre Tokyo newcomer race in October of 2014, Duramente got off the mark next out there a month later and quickly added the Saintpaulia Sho in his sophomore bow in February of 2015. Runner-up to persistent rival Real Steel in the G2 Kyodo News Service Hai stepped up to group company just 14 days later, Duramente would not lose again in 2015. He added a first Classic win in the 2000-metre G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) over this course with Real Steel settling for second in April of that year and triumphed in stakes-record time of 2:23.20 in the 2400-metre G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) returned to Tokyo May 31. The previous record was set in 2004 by his sire King Kamehameha and equaled a year later by 2005 Japanese Triple Crown winner Deep Impact (Jpn) (Sunday Silence). Duramente sustained fractures to both forelegs at the end of June, which scuttled any further 2015 appearances, including plans to travel to France and contest the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
Duramente is the fifth foal out of the high-class two-time Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup heroine Admire Groove (Jpn) (Sunday Silence), herself a half-sister to G1SW Rulership (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}), MGSW Forgettable (Jpn) (Dance in the Dark (Jpn) and SW Gullveig (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}). Second dam is dual champion Dyna Carle (Jpn) (Northern Taste).
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