Rock This Town First Stakes Winner for Orfevre
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Photo: Courtesy of Japan Racing Association
Rock This Town takes the Sapporo Nisai Stakes Sept. 2 with Christophe Lemaire aboard
Sunday Racing's Rock This Town (JPN) won the Sapporo Nisai Stakes (G3) for 2-year-old fillies Sept. 2, and became the first black-type and graded stakes winner for first-crop sire Orfevre.
The filly trained by Yoshitaka Ninomiya made a successful debut Aug. 6 at Niigata Racecourse, where she defeated colts going 1,800 meters (about 1 1/8 miles) on firm turf, the same conditions of the Sapporo Nisai.
In just her second start as the 2-1 favorite in the 14-horse field, Rock This Town tracked the early leaders, responded well when jockey Christophe Lemaire asked, and wore down Fast Approach (JPN) to win by neck.
Her next start is undecided, according to Shunsuke Yoshida, who operates Sunday Racing.
Orfevre, also campaigned by Sunday Racing, was the 2011 Japanese Triple Crown winner and Japanese horse of the year. He captured the Arima Kinen Grand Prix (G1), the year-end championship race in Japan, in 2011 and 2013. Not a precocious juvenile, Orfevre won one race from three starts and placed 10th in the Keio Hai Nisai Stakes (G2) at 2.
A son of Stay Gold (JPN), Orfevre began stud duty at Shadai Stallion Station in 2014 for a fee of ¥6,000,000 (approximately US$54,000). He had 156 foals in his first crop. Rock This Town, out of Stray Cat (JPN), by Storm Cat, is a half sister to Cat Coin (JPN) (Stay Gold), who took the 2015 Daily Hai Queen Cup (G3).
As of Sept. 2 Orfevre has 4 winners from 24 starters.