Resistencia Looks for Rebound in NHK Mile Cup

Tokyo Racecourse kicks off five consecutive weeks of top-level racing May 10 with the NHK Mile Cup (G1) for 3-year-olds.

The race traditionally brings together colts and fillies with widely varied experience. Those conditions might help explain the all-or-naught record of the past 10 favorites—five winners and five finishing fourth or worse. 

This year's expected favorite is Resistencia, a daughter of Daiwa Major who was named Japan's 2-year-old filly champion last year after winning all three of her starts. She finished with a flourish—a record performance in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (G1) in 1:32.70, nearly a half-second faster than the previous record set in 2006 by the immortal Vodka.

The 3-year-old season has not been as kind, however, as Resistencia was third in the March 7 Tulip Sho (G2) at Hanshin and second in the Oka Sho (Japanese One Thousand Guineas, G1) over the same course April 12. Those heats were both at the same 1,600 meters, and neither winner is contesting the Mile.

"The track was heavy in the Oka Sho, but she did her best," trainer Takeshi Matsushita said of Resistencia. "Because of the ground, I was a bit concerned about her recovery, so I sent her to the farm where she was well taken care of and is fully recovered now. She was in very good shape for her last start, so the focus has been on maintaining her condition."

Matsushita noted this will be Resistencia's first race against colts, her first time racing left-handed, and her first "long haul" to a track from the Ritto training center. Her previous races were at nearby Kyoto or Hanshin.

"She loses weight even when traveling from Ritto to Hanshin, so the question is how much she'll lose this time. We'll bring her in on Saturday, so I'm hoping that'll help," the trainer said.

Christophe Lemaire will be aboard as Resistencia leaves from gate 3 in a field of 18. Lemaire leads all Japanese riders in earnings and trails only Yuga Kawada in victories.

Daiwa Major progeny have won the NHK Mile three times in the past decade, including last year's victor, Admire Mars. Resistencia's dam, Malacostumbrada, was a group 1 winner in her homeland.

Others in the race include Satono Impresa, a Deep Impact colt who steps up in class and 200 meters back in distance after sweeping his three previous starts; Taisei Vision, a son of Turtle Bowl who was second in the Asahi Hai Futurity (G1) in December and opened his campaign with a win in the Arlington Cup (G3) at Hanshin April 18; and Luftstrom, a son of Kinshasa no Kiseki who was unraced last year but is 3-for-3 in 2020.

Satono Impresa's assistant trainer, Shigeki Miyauchi, summed things up for most of the field, saying, "The unknowns make it interesting."

Two Orfevre fillies also are set to try the NHK Mile. Gilded Mirror has two wins and two seconds from a quartet of outings. Shine Garnet led home a field of mostly males in her most recent start, the Falcon Stakes (G2) at Chukyo, going 1,400 meters (about seven furlongs).

The race starts on the backstretch and continues around a sweeping turn into the backstretch where the runners face a steep climb for about 200 meters before the drive to the finish. The race is worth about $2.1 million with about $973,000 to the winner.