Almond Eye Leads Star-Studded Japan Cup

Three Triple Crown winners—one on her way to retirement and two undefeated 3-year-olds on course for stardom—meet at Tokyo Racecourse Nov. 29 in the 40th running of the Japan Cup (G1).

Almond Eye, a 5-year-old daughter of Lord Kanaloa, counts among her eight grade/group 1 victories the 2018 Japanese fillies' Triple Crown races and that year's Japan Cup.

Contrail, a Deep Impact colt, enters the Japan Cup with a record of seven wins from as many starts, including this year's Triple Crown for male 3-year-olds. Daring Tact, a daughter of Epiphaneia, is 5-for-5 and earned the fillies' Triple Crown title.

Added to the Japan Cup mix is Way to Paris, a French-trained 7-year-old son of Champs Elysees who won the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud (G1) June 28. The Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud is one of 24 races qualifying the winner for a bonus payout for a subsequent victory in the Japan Cup. Way to Paris would earn a $3 million bonus should he find a way to victory in Tokyo—that in addition to the approximate $2.73 million winner's share of the purse.

Despite those generous inducements, international competitors have been relative rarities in recent Japan Cups as locals dominate the country's signature race. Alkaased was the last foreign-trained winner in 2005.

Local fans will be looking at a changing of the guard as Almond Eye's departure to the breeding shed will leave a void at the top of Japan's equine ranks.

Almond Eye, produced from the Sunday Silence mare Fusaichi Pandora, showed promise as a 2-year-old with a win and a second from two starts. She quickly blossomed to stardom in 2018, winning all five starts. Her Japan Cup victory was a dominating effort in record time.

She began her 4-year-old campaign in the Middle East, winning the Dubai Turf Sponsored by DP World (G1) in another commanding performance. That started talk that Almond Eye might finally be the one to bring Japan victory in the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1), a race that has eluded the nation's best for decades.

When she returned to Japan, however, it became clear the travel sapped her strength as she settled for third in the Yasuda Kinen (G1) just two months later. After a break of nearly four months, she won the Tenno Sho (Autumn, G1) Oct. 27. Again, a relatively short turnaround took its toll and Almond Eye ran ninth in the Arima Kinen Grand Prix (G1) Dec. 22—by far the worst performance of her career.

She was in Dubai in March and ready to defend her title there when the entire Dubai World Cup program was abruptly canceled, pushing back her season debut to the Victoria Mile (G1) May 17, which she won. She tried the Yasuda Kinen again just three weeks later, finishing second. After nearly five months off, she won the Tenno Sho (Autumn) Nov. 1 and now reappears again on four weeks' rest.

Trainer Sakae Kunieda addressed the short turnaround issue after Almond Eye drew gate 2 in the field of 15.

"She has gotten a lot stronger now," Kunieda said. "Whereas she was always exhausted after a race, now she's not, and I saw no signs of fatigue after the Tenno Sho. … As for the time between races, she went from the Victoria Mile to the Yasuda Kinen, and though she lost, it was still a good race. This time, she's still in good shape, so it should be OK."

Almond Eye's jockey, Christophe Lemaire, had his eye on the competition. 

"Both Contrail and Daring Tact are amazing horses, and they've given us some very good races," Lemaire said. "They showed us both speed and stamina. The two of them are very talented. So I think this year's Japan Cup is going to be quite difficult. It's very hard to tell who will win. I'll think about my strategy two days before the race."

Contrail completed his Triple Crown sweep with a narrow victory in the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger, G1) Oct. 25. Out of the Unbridled's Song mare Rhodochrosite, the colt has won at distances from 1,800 meters (about 1 1/8 miles) to 3,000 meters (about 1 7/8 miles) at five tracks while racing both left- and right-handed.

His rider, Yuichi Fukunaga, said, "I've never ridden Almond Eye or Daring Tact, so I can't well judge where they're strong or weak. But Contrail's best point is his acceleration and his mental power. He has yet to go full out. He has a kick we haven't even seen yet."

Daring Tact, from the King Kamehameha mare Daring Bird, put the final jewel in her Triple Crown in the Shuka Sho (G1) Oct. 18 in her most recent start. 

There are lots of other chances in the race should the marquee players falter.

Curren Bouquetd'or, a 4-year-old Deep Impact filly, has finished second in four consecutive races, including the 2019 Japan Cup. Glory Vase, a 5-year-old son of Deep Impact, won the Longines Hong Kong Vase (G1) last December at Sha Tin Racecourse and exits a group 2 win at Kyoto.