Daring Tact Mows Down Leaders in Oka Sho

A newcomer crashed the fillies' party on a gloomy day in the Osaka area as Daring Tact came with a late run to defeat the favorite, Resistencia, in the grade 1 Oka Sho (Japanese One Thousand Guineas) April 12.

The Oka Sho—the first leg of the Japanese fillies' Triple Tiara—featured the top three finishers from last December's Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (G1): Resistencia, Maltese Diosa, and Cravache d'Or. The same three filled the placings in the March 2 Tulip Sho (G2) with Maltese Diosa taking the top honors.

At the top of the long Hanshin Racecourse stretch in the Oka Sho, it appeared Resistencia had revenge well in hand as jockey Yutaka Take sent her to the lead and began to open space on the field.

But the lead then evaporated quickly as Daring Tact, under Kohei Matsuyama, flew by on the outside and kicked away to win by 1 1/2 lengths. The Epiphaneia filly got the 1,600 meters (about one mile) in 1:36.1. The Hanshin Racecourse turf was rated yielding as rain fell on the empty stands, which remain vacant in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Resistencia held second with Smile Kana a long-shot third after leading into the stretch. Cravache d'Or managed fourth while Maltese Diosa settled for eighth. Ria Amelia, by Deep Impact and out of 2013 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) winner Ria Antonia, was sent off fourth-favorite but was never in the mix and finished 10th.

Daring Tact was caught behind rivals during the dash down the backstretch and fell well behind Smile Kana and Resistencia before Matsuyama was able to get her free for a run outside rivals.

"I concentrated on her rhythm more than where to position her today," Matsuyama said. "We were far behind the leaders and desperate in catching up but she responded beautifully and stretched incredibly all the way to the line."

Before the race, trainer Haruki Sugiyama said he thought his filly might benefit from a rivalry on the front end of the Oka Sho.

"She finishes well so it'll be better if the pace picks up," Sugiyama said. "She'll go to the gate in good shape."

The victory was the third without a loss for Daring Tact, who was testing grade 1 waters for the first time. It put her firmly in the mix for the grade 1 Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks) May 24 at Tokyo Racecourse. That race is contested at 2,400 meters (about 1 1/2 miles). Daring Tact has not yet run more than 1,600 meters.

"I'm not worried about the added distance in the coming Japanese Oaks," Matsuyama said. "But she does have issues to work on such as being relaxed. 

"I'm praying that the day we can race in front of the crowd again will come soon."

Daring Tact is out of the King Kamehameha mare Daring Bird. Bred by Hasegawa Bokujo, she races for Normandy Thoroughbred Racing Co.