Romantic Warrior brings Group 1 streak into Yasuda Kinen

Taking on the top milers from Japan, seven-time international Group 1 winner and Hong Kong-based Romantic Warrior leads an 18-horse field for the Group 1, US$2.7 million Yasuda Kinen on June 2 at Tokyo Racecourse. The winner of the one-mile race on turf will earn an automatic starting position into the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Mile through the Breeders’ Cup challenge series.

The Yasuda Kinen will be shown live on FanDuel TV on Sunday morning at 2:40 a.m. EDT.

Making his first start in Japan, Peter Pak Fai Lau’s 6-year-old gelding Romantic Warrior comes into the Yasuda Kinen off a torrid stretch of four consecutive Group 1 wins at 1 1/4 miles. Trained by Danny Chap Sing Chum, Romantic Warrior’s top-level streak began last October in Australia, where he took the Cox Plate (G1) at Moonee Valley. Returning to his Hong Kong base, the son of Acclamation out of the Street Cry mare Folk Melody captured the Dec. 10 Hong Kong Cup (G1) at Sha Tin over Luxembourg and followed up Feb. 28 by taking the Hong Kong Gold Cup (G1), defeating Voyage Bubble by a neck.

Last time out, he made it four in a row by coming widest of all down the stretch to win the April 28 QE II (G1) at Sha Tin by a neck, improving his record to 14 wins in 19 starts.

“He’s just a champion racehorse and I think his greatest attributes is sustained speed, a fantastic will to win and he’s got a big heart – he loves fighting out finishes and he’s never let us down yet, so I can’t see him doing otherwise in the Yasuda Kinen,” said his regular rider James McDonald on the Japan Racing Association website. “He’s showcased his skills in Australia and Hong Kong and we’re hoping that he will run a good race on Sunday and hopefully he can showcase how good he is to the Japanese fans.”

Fellow Hong Kong star Voyage Bubble has won six races for Sunshine And Moonlight Syndicate and trainer Poon Fai Yiu. Following a half-length defeat to Golden Sixty in the Hong Kong Mile last December, the 6-year-old gelding by Deep Field won Sha Tin’s Jan. 21 Stewards Cup (G1) at one mile. He comes into this race off a third-place finish in the April 28 Champions Mile (G1) at Sha Tin over a yielding course.

Among the leaders in the formidable Japanese contingent is Tatsue Ishikawa’s 6-year-old Soul Rush, who won his seventh race last time out when he took the April 21 Yomiuri Milers Cup (G2) by 1 3/4 lengths over Serifos at Kyoto in his seasonal debut. Trained by Yasutoshi Ikee, the son of Rulership has been a consistently top miler. He captured last September’s Keisei Hai Autumn Handicap (G3) at Nakayama and was second by a neck to Namur in the Nov. 19 Mile Championship (G1) at Kyoto. He will look to improve on his ninth-place finish in last year’s Yasuda Kinen.

Seeking her sixth win, Carrot Farm Co. Ltd.’s 5-year-old mare Namur is looking to make amends for her surprising eighth-place finish as the second choice in the May 12 Victoria Mile (G1), a qualifier for the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf. Trained by Tomokazu Takano, the daughter of Harbinger ran third in last year’s Hong Kong Mile, and opened the season with a stellar performance, finishing second in a head-bobbing finish to Facteur Cheval by a nose in the 1 1/8-mile Dubai Turf (G1) on March 30 at Meydan.

As a part of the benefits of the challenge series, Breeders’ Cup will pay the entry fees for the winner of the Yasuda Kinen to start in the Breeders’ Cup Mile on turf at Del Mar. Breeders’ Cup will also provide a travel allowance for all starters based outside of North America to compete in the World Championships. The challenge winner must be nominated to the Breeders’ Cup program by the pre-entry deadline of Oct. 21 to receive the rewards.