Coming off a fifth-place finish in the Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas, G1, 1,600m), the decision made by Aerolithe’s connections to alter her target towards the NHK Mile Cup instead of the traditional Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks, G1, 2,400m) proved successful as the Kurofune filly demonstrated a powerful performance for her first grade-race and G1 title over the 1,600-meter distance. The three-year-old filly who broke her maiden as a two-year-old in her debut start in June followed by a runner-up effort that season, scored two more second-place finishes in her first two grade-race starts this year in the Fairy Stakes (G3, 1,600m; Jan.8) and the Queen Cup (G3, 1,600; Feb.11) before the Oka Sho. Trainer Takanori Kikuzawa, a former jockey with a career total of 639 wins including 10 grade-race titles before retiring in 2010, opened his yard in 2011 and had four grade-race titles as a trainer coming into the NHK Mile Cup. This victory is his first at G1 level. Jockey Norihiro Yokoyama won his first G1 title since winning the same race with Clarity Sky in 2015 and now has a career total of 26 JRA-G1 wins.

Aerolithe was the first to jump out as soon as the gate opened then eased back to around sixth position behind Bom Servico who set the pace for most of the 1,600-meter trip. Already making steady headway after the third corner while still traveling wide, veteran Norihiro Yokayama shifted Aerolithe slightly towards the inside as the powerful gray filly accelerated impressively to overtake the leader with a little less than 200 meters to go and held off a fast closing Rieno Tesoro for a 1-1/2 length victory.

“I felt she had great potential when I first sat on her in training as a two-year-old. She was in great condition coming into this race and strong. She was a bit too quick out of the gate but settled nicely without me actually hitting the brakes. She still appears to have a lot more in her and I expect her to be even more powerful in the autumn season,” commented Norihiro Yokoyama.

Rieno Tesoro traveled in mid-pack a few lengths behind Aerolithe, edged forward a little later than the eventual winner, had to angle out for a clear run and demonstrated an extremely impressive charge along the outside but was a fraction too late to cause a serious threat to the leader while clearly besting the rest of the field.

Bom Servico showed good early speed to assume command before the first furlong pole, still led rounding the final turn and held on well along the homestretch to fend off all but the two top finishers for third.

Race favorite Karakurenai under Mirco Demuro broke smoothly and was unhurried along the rails in mid-division early. Still well behind between the third and last corner, the Lohengrin filly had little to show after being shifted slightly towards the outside for the stretch run finishing 17th.
Other Horses:
4th: (15) Red en Ciel―traveled 4-wide outside favorite, responded well, timed 2nd fastest over last 3 furlongs
5th: (11) All the Go―sat outside favorite, quickened after 300m marker, outrun by Red en Ciel before wire
6th: (8) Time Trip―ran in 7-8th, improved position to 4th at stretch, outrun in final strides
7th: (12) Mi Suerte―raced 3-wide 5-6th from rear, accelerated at stretch, was too late
8th: (13) Trust―chased leader in 2nd or 3rd, showed tenacity, weakened in last 200m
9th: (1) Monde Can Know―stalked leaders in 4th, sustained bid, outrun in last 200m
10th: (10) Divine Code―prominent early inside eventual winner, ran willingly until 200m out
11th: (5) Platina Voice―traveled in 7-8th, lacked needed kick at stretch
12th: (7) Jo Strictly―settled 5-6th from rear, turned wide, passed tired rivals at stretch
13th: (3) Outliers―took economic trip 4th from rear, even paced at stretch
14th: (2) Kyohei―hugged rails 2nd or 3rd from rear, showed brief response
15th: (9) Taisei Starry―positioned 2nd or 3rd from rear, unable to reach contention
16th: (17) Knight Banneret―was off slow, trailed in far rear, no factor throughout
18th: (18) Gun Salute―sat 4-wide around 6th, ran gamely until 300m out, faded