Gran Alegria Tops Deep Field for Mile Championship

Gran Alegria looks for a third consecutive grade 1 win when she faces last year's winner and some progressive 3-year-olds in a diverse field in the Mile Championship Nov. 22 at Hanshin Racecourse.

In her past two starts, Gran Alegria, a 4-year-old daughter of Deep Impact, won the Yasuda Kinen (G1) at one mile at Tokyo Racecourse in June and the 1,200-meter (about six-furlong) Sprinters Stakes (G1) at Nakayama Racecourse Oct. 4. She has won six of nine races and missed a top-three finish only once.

She was a solid favorite in early wagering by Japanese punters, and trainer Kazuo Fujisawa shared their optimism.

"It's been easy getting her ready after her last race, and everything's gone as expected," Fujisawa said after Gran Alegria drew gate 4 in a field of 17.

"She always works well in training, and this week she's just run on the turf training track as we didn't need to push her too hard. She's relaxed, too, so she'll go to the race in top condition, and it's good that she's also won at Hanshin before."

Japan's leading rider, Christophe Lemaire, will be aboard for the Sunday Racing owners.

Indy Champ, a 5-year-old by Stay Gold, won last year's Mile Championship, then missed the Sprinters Stakes with a minor injury and makes a comeback from a long absence.

"It seems like his condition is better now than it was in the spring, and he's somewhere around where he was last autumn, so I think he can get a good result here," said Indy Champ's rider, Yuichi Fukunaga. "I suppose the key really is how he can do with this being his first race in a while, but I want to do my best in what is a great-looking race."

Among the others, Admire Mars, the winner of the 2019 Longines Hong Kong Mile (G1), warmed up for this with a third-place finish in the Mainichi Broadcast Swan Stakes (G2) at Kyoto. The 4-year-old Daiwa Major colt scored the first of his top-level wins on the Hanshin course in the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes (G1) in December 2018.

The 3-year-olds in the field worth noting include Salios, second in the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby, G1), and Resistencia, a filly returning from an injury after finishing second in the NHK Mile Cup (G1) in May.

Salios, by Heart's Cry, was idle for 4 1/2 months after the Tokyo Yushun, returning to action with a victory in the Mainichi Okan (G2) at Tokyo Racecourse Oct. 11. Trainer Noriyuki Hori said the colt needed a bit of recovery time after the comeback effort, adding, "We're just being careful with him and checking his condition as this race approaches."

Resistencia, a Daiwa Major filly, won all three starts as a 2-year-old, including the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (G1) in stakes-record time. She has two seconds and a third from three starts this year, with the runner-up showings including the Oka Sho (Japanese One Thousand Guineas, G1).

"Obviously, it's been a while since she ran," trainer Takeshi Matsushita said of Resistencia. "But there's no problem with the way she's moving, and with her record at Hanshin, I'm looking forward to her run here, and I think she can do well against the older horses."