Japanese Oaks Test Looms for Sodashi

Her record is unblemished as her pure white coat and, at first glance, Sodashi would seem a logical favorite in the Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks, G1) May 23 at Tokyo Racecourse.

Still, there are questions to be answered about the distinctive filly, whose appearance and gritty determination to find the finish first in each of her five starts have captured the imagination of the enthusiastic Japanese fan base.

Chief among those questions is the distance. Sodashi has never raced beyond 1,800 meters (about 1 1/8 miles) and the Yushun Himba requires an additional 600 meters—the 2,400 meters being equivalent of 1 1/2 miles. Toss in the fact she never dominates her competition, with her two grade 1 victories coming by a nose and a neck, and that her previous performances were on or near the lead and the long trip ends with a testing, uphill climb through the Tokyo stretch.

Further, she is by Kurofune . His progeny, according to the Japan Racing Association, have won 40 graded stakes races—none longer than 1,800 meters.

On the plus side, those close finishes have demonstrated a will to win and the record says the others have her to beat. Trainer Naosuki Sugai aligns with those on the plus side and cites her last-race victory in the Oka Sho (Japanese One Thousand Guineas, G1).

"She came out of the race without a scratch and, after that, has been at the training center nearly the whole time. She has handled all the work we've given her with ease. She's been more than ideal and, in a good way, nothing has changed," Sugai said before the barrier draw, where Sodashi was assigned gate No. 11 in a field of 18.

"People ask about the distance, but I've had my sights set on the Oaks from her debut and though she was great in the Oka Sho, I know she can handle more ground," the trainer added. "I'm hoping she'll listen well to jockey Hayato Yoshida and not get in any fights with him. She has a lot of power, so I think a track that has a bit of cushion to it would be best."

Satono Reinas, second behind Sodashi in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (G1) in December and just a neck short of upsetting the white marvel in the Oka Sho, is giving the Yushun Himba a pass. But Fine Rouge, a Kizuna  filly who was only another half-length back in that last race, returns for another shot.

Yuichi Fukunaga, who will ride Fine Rouge, had a different take on the impact of the distance.

"For a 3-year-old filly, racing over 2,400 meters is not easy," Fukunaga said. "It's a tough race for any horse. From my experience, I think the ability to maneuver is more important than, when a horse is still not fully mature, a suitability to the distance. Excellent control is extremely important and she has it." 

Cool Cat, a daughter of Screen Hero , has improved as the distances have expanded in each of her last three starts. She scored her second-ever win in the Sankei Sports Sho Flora Stakes (G2) at 2,000 meters April 25 over the Tokyo greensward.

Cool Cat's trainer, Takeshi Okumura, had yet another take on the conditions of the race.

"She has more distance this time," Okumura said. "But key will still be whether she can get a smooth trip with no traffic problems. The competition from the Oka Sho top finishers is steep, but each year I have the same feeling. There's always room for someone else to get in there and be competitive."

If "someone else" is to get in there, it could be the likes of Cool Cat, Uberleben , who has been third in each of her last three races, starting with the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies and most recently in the Flora Stakes, or Slyly, by Orfevre , second in the Flora Stakes.

Sodashi is only the third filly to win the Oka Sho while unbeaten and would be the third to win the Yushun Himba with a clean record.