Cafe Pharoah looks to stay hot in Japan Dirt Derby
Jul 05, 2020 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com
The runaway leader in the points standings for the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, Cafe Pharoah looks to remain perfect in the series finale in Wednesday’s Japan Dirt Derby. The exciting American Pharoah colt tops a field of 13 in the about 1 1/4-mile test at Tokyo’s Oi Racecourse.
Tune in to TwinSpires.com early Wednesday morning -- post time is 7:05 a.m. ET!
Cafe Pharoah enters with 70 points, 30 from his last-to-first heroics in the Feb. 23 Hyacinth and 40 from his stakes-record romp in the June 21 Unicorn (G3). Both of those came around a one-turn metric mile, but he’d aced his career debut going about 1 1/8 miles at Nakayama in December, and the increased distance doesn’t appear an obvious concern. Drawn in post 2 with Australian rider Damian Lane, Cafe Pharoah can firm up his Kentucky Derby status with another top performance.
Full Flat was most recently sixth in the Unicorn, his first start since upsetting the Saudi Derby on Saudi Cup Day. The Hideyuki Mori pupil might do better second time out, considering that he was also beaten in his comeback after a fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1). Whether the Speightstown colt will be as effective at this longer distance is another question, but he is out of a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro and Grade 1 vixen Fire the Groom. And his Saudi form has turned out to be noteworthy, with runner-up Mishriff winning Sunday’s French Derby (G1). Japanese legend Yutaka Take will guide Full Flat from post 5.
Here is the full field in post order, from goracing.jp:
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