Daiwa Scarlet makes history in Arima Kinen

Daiwa Scarlet is just the fourth female winner in the 53-year history of the Arima Kinen, and the first since 1971 (Tomoya Moriuchi/Horsephotos.com) Keizo Oshiro's DAIWA SCARLET (Agnes Tachyon) ran her rivals ragged from pillar to post in Sunday's $3,333,000 Arima Kinen (Jpn-G1), becoming the first distaffer in 37 years to win the famed Grand Prix at Nakayama. The 2,500-meter (about 1 9/16-mile) affair ranks as the all-star event in Japanese racing, with fans casting votes to determine their top 10 runners for the Arima Kinen. The remainder of the field consists of the season's other leading money winners. Judging by their ballots, the fans hoped to see a rematch between archrivals Vodka (Tanino Gimlet) and Daiwa Scarlet, the respective top two vote-getters for the Arima Kinen. The pair had put on a scintillating stretch run in the November 2 Tenno Sho Autumn (Jpn-G1), where Vodka won the photo by a mere two centimeter-margin over Daiwa Scarlet. While Vodka reappeared in the November 30 Japan Cup (Jpn-G1) and finished third, Daiwa Scarlet deliberately skipped that race and chose to await the Arima Kinen. That plan worked to perfection for trainer Kunihide Matsuda. Daiwa Scarlet was fresh and ready to go in the Arima Kinen. Moreover, Vodka, still drained from the Japan Cup, wound up not taking part at all. With regular rider Katsumi Ando aboard, Daiwa Scarlet, the 5-2 favorite, sprinted to the early lead through demanding fractions. Kawakami Princess (King Halo) raced in second, followed closely by Meisho Samson (Opera House [GB]) in his career finale. Japan Cup upsetter Screen Hero (Grass Wonder) bided his time in midpack on the outside, while defending Arima Kinen champion Matsurida Gogh (Sunday Silence) lagged farther back than usual.

Ando shrewdly gave Daiwa Scarlet a bit of a breather in the middle stages.

When he asked her to pick it up again turning for home, the chestnut opened up

on her pursuers. Kawakami Princess and Meisho Samson soon bowed out of

contention. Screen Hero and Matsurida Gogh tried to rally while wide on the

turn, but neither came close to threatening the commanding leader.

Instead, it was Admire Monarch (Dream Well [Fr]), the longest shot on the

board at 90-1, who made headway down the center of the course. His bid was still

too little, too late, as Daiwa Scarlet strode home by 1 3/4 lengths and stopped

the clock in 2:31.5 on the firm turf. In the process, she avenged her defeat in

last year's Arima Kinen, when she settled for runner-up honors to the surprising

Matsurida Gogh.

"I don't know what to say," Matsuda said. "I owe it to the staff at my

stable, the jockey, the owner and everyone else involved with 'Scarlet.' We lost

the Tenno Sho by just two centimeters, and we came here with a lot to prove.

"Two thousand meters (about 1 1/4 miles) is probably a better distance for

her, but it's a better distance for other horses as well," the trainer observed.

"It all starts from the workouts. After the Tenno Sho, our target was to keep

her as loose and relaxed as possible, and I think everyone associated with Daiwa

Scarlet fulfilled his responsibility, in particular the jockey.

"I never said a word to him before the race, but Ando was perfect today. We

had to set a relatively fast pace to the race because if we slowed it down too

much, it would have made it easier for the others. Because the race progressed

pretty fast, the other horses had to work to keep up, and you have to credit

Ando for dictating the race precisely the right way. Last year, Matsurida Gogh

passed us on the final turn to the finish, but at today's pace, he wasn't going

to do that."

"I knew she would find her second wind so I wasn't the least bit concerned,"

said Ando, the only jockey Daiwa Scarlet has known. "I didn't get the sense

anyone else was going to take the lead, so she had no problems running at a pace

she liked. I think today's performance proved once again what a strong horse she

is. I mean, she has never failed to show and that says something about her."

Admire Monarch had three-quarters of a length to spare over Air Shady (Sunday

Silence) in third, who in turn crossed the wire a nose ahead of Dream Journey

(Stay Gold). Screen Hero was another neck away in fifth. Al Nasrain (Admire

Vega), Kawakami Princess, Meisho Samson, Flotation (Special Week), Venture Nine

(Eishin Sandy), Cosmo Bulk (Zagreb), Matsurida Gogh, Air Zipangu (El Condor Pasa)

and Asakusa Kings (White Muzzle [GB]) rounded out the order of finish.

Daiwa Scarlet now boasts a record of 12-8-4-0 with a bankroll exceeding $6.8

million. She was honored as Japan's champion three-year-old filly of 2007 after

capturing the Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup (Jpn-G1), Oka Sho (Japanese

One Thousand Guineas), Shuka Sho and the Kansai Telecasting Corp. Sho Rose S. In

both the Oka Sho and Shuka Sho, she defeated Vodka, who had previously just

pipped her in the Tulip Sho.

Matsuda eyed a raid on Dubai last March, but Daiwa Scarlet suffered a minor

eye injury in training and had to miss her engagement at Nad al Sheba. She made

her four-year-old debut in the Sankei Osaka Hai (Jpn-G2) versus older males and

duly won in wire-to-wire fashion. Unfortunately, she then came up with a splint

injury and did not race again until the aforementioned Tenno Sho Autumn. Despite

her seven-month layoff, and the scorching pace she carved out, she was just

barely outdueled by the in-form Vodka.

Bred by Shadai Farm in Japan, the winner is out of the multiple Japanese Grade 3 queen Scarlet Bouquet (Northern Taste). Daiwa Scarlet is a three-quarter sister to multiple Japanese champion Daiwa

Major (Sunday Silence), whose conquests include the Satsuki Sho (Japanese Two

Thousand Guineas), Tenno Sho Autumn, Yasuda Kinen (Jpn-G1) and two runnings of

the Mile Championship (Jpn-G1). Daiwa Scarlet is also a three-quarter sister to

Japanese Grade 3 victress and classic-placed Daiwa Rouge (Sunday Silence), and a

half-sister to stakes-placed Scarlet Mail (Tony Bin). This is the family of

Japan Cup Dirt (Jpn-G1) star Vermilion (El Condor Pasa), who was a close third

when trying to defend his title last time out.

An international campaign is once again in the offing for Daiwa Scarlet.

"I haven't gotten the owner's permission yet, but speaking strictly from a

trainer's standpoint, I would like to try her overseas," Matsuda said. "We

haven't decided where, when and which race yet, but we want to put her up

against the best horses in the world."