Posted 10 May 2008
Updated 13 May 2008

Tomorrow’s Victoria Mile could feature a runaway favorite.

The champion of the 1,600-meter contest for fillies and mares, 4-year-olds & up, is being tipped to be Vodka, the Katsuhiko Sumii-trained filly who became the first female horse in more than six decades to win the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) last year.

Coming off a fourth-place performance in the Dubai Duty Free in late March, Vodka should be glad that she is returning to the very track where she made history nearly one year ago by winning the Japanese Derby. The Victoria Mile will be run under the exact same conditions as an international Grade 1 race at Tokyo Racecourse—the Yasuda Kinen, part of the Asian Mile Challenge.

The race opens at the mouth of the backstretch, beginning a straight run of more than 500 meters before gently curving over 400 meters into Tokyo’s famous homestretch of 525 meters. The first 225 meters slopes upward, the hill so punishing that the lead often changes inside the last 100 meters. The beauty of the Tokyo racetrack—widely regarded as the course with the fewest disadvantages in Japan—is not just its architecture, but the excitement that the long straight brings.

While the Victoria Mile is open to overseas entries, Sunday’s field will be purely made up of domestic-based horses for the third straight year. Last year, Koiuta took everyone by surprise as the long-shot turned the tables on the favorites. Will Vodka, who is expected to be the top choice come post time, come through?

Here are the contenders for the honors:

VODKA: Fresh back from Dubai, the Tanino Gimlet bay will look to produce her first victory since the Japanese Derby. Vodka was the highest Japanese finisher on Dubai World Cup day, and had been farmed out for a breather until May 1. Vodka has a superb record at the mile, having won four of five with one second-place finish. She will again be in the magic hands of jockey Yutaka Take, who has yet to win the Victoria Mile. Barring injury or a major drop off in her conditioning, Vodka must be seen as a huge potential winner.

BELLA RHEIA: The Victoria Mile will be her first race since October, when she took fourth in the 2,000-meter Shuka Sho at Kyoto, the third leg of the filly’s triple crown. Bella Rheia, 4, was also runner-up in the second leg, the Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks), over 2,400 meters at Tokyo. No other course in the country better suits her closing rush than the Tokyo track, where she has won one of her three victories. Bella Rheia has the fewest number of starts among all entries, but the inexperience or the layoff shouldn’t prevent her from making a run at the 90 million yen winner’s check.

ASIAN WINDS: Another 4-year-old, the daughter of Fuji Kiseki will make her top-level race debut in the Victoria Mile. She will form a new partnership with Shinji Fujita, who was third last year aboard Daring Heart. Asian Winds doesn’t have a great deal of experience, with only 10 races under her belt, but the performances have been of high quality—just one finish under third, with five wins. The concern with Asian Winds is that she has never been tested at 1,600 meters, and the Tokyo mile can be cruel to any horse who lacks stamina. We’ll find out what she’s made out of come Sunday.

BLUMENBLATT: This 5-year-old could be the hottest entry going into the race. Since returning from injury in October after a three-month absence, Blumenblatt won her first two races back, then finished third, fourth, second in consecutive principal races. She will be in the sure hands of Hiroki Goto, the Kanto-based jockey who knows the Tokyo track unlike any other. Blumenblatt appears to be peaking at the right time, and could pose the biggest threat to Vodka.

JOLLY DANCE: She may be the oldest in the field at 7, but is aging gracefully. Jolly Dance has a good track record at Tokyo, coming in third at last year’s Yasuda Kinen to winner Daiwa Major, and fifth in the Victoria Mile behind Koiuta. Her renewed partnership with big-race jockey Katsumi Ando will only be a plus, and her come-from-behind style couldn’t be better suited to Tokyo. Definitely much more than an interesting pick.

NISHINO MANAMUSUME: A 4-year-old daughter of Agnes Tachyon, she has been a model of consistency (four wins in 12 starts, only three finishes under third) and is coming off a very narrow defeat in last month’s Yomiuri Milers Cup against the boys. Nishino Manamusume only finished a neck behind Company, the rising horse who will be among the favorites for next month’s Yasuda Kinen. She has no graded titles to her credit yet, but that could all change this weekend.

KISS TO HEAVEN: A former Oka Sho champion, Kiss to Heaven has not won in nearly two years. But the 5-year-old has finished third twice and fourth once in three races this year, and could be regaining her form. She was fourth in the Victoria Mile last year, and should Vodka falter, Kiss to Heaven could be back on top.
(Source: JAIR)