Mile Championship (G1) Preview and Selections

Sunday afternoon - which means about 1:40 AM ET for my American readers - Kyoto will hosts its Group 1 Mile Championship.  A hefty field of eighteen is assembled for the 1600 meter event, including last year's winner, Sadamu Patek.  The five year-old son of Fuji Kiseki rallied from off the pace in 2012 to give veteran rider Yutaka Take his first Mile Championship win.  Second and third place finishers Grand Prix Boss and Donau Blue are also here, though both are coming into 2013's edition after less than stellar years.

Noticeably absent here is Lord Kanaloa, who smoked several of these in his two Grade 1 starts this year.  That racehorse, who would most likely be a strong favorite to win this race, is instead pointing for Hong Kong.

Three females will try their hand against the boys, including Donau Blue.  The best of them this year is Meine Isabel, who was a good fourth in the Yasuda Kinen (G1) behind Lord Kanaloa.  Three year-old filly Red Oval gets a slight breather - the lowest weight in the large field.

A horse to look out for is Danon Shark.  Sixth in the Mile Championship last year, he has finished on the board in all five of his starts this year so far, including a third in the Yasuda Kinen, where he was one of a trio closing fast near the wire.  He won comfortably in his last out, a Grade 3 prep for this race, and should be primed to run a big effort here.  Look out also for Clarente, who sizzled 1800 meters in 1:45 and change two starts back.  This lower-level graded runner could make some noise here.

Look for three year-old colt Copano Richard and Garbo to be on or near the pace, as well as Sakura Gospel.  They should set a hot tempo for the closers to come running, just as Sadamu Patek did last year.

Can lightning strike twice?  The beginning half of this year was not good for Sadamu Patek, but after a four month layoff, he made a lovely closing drive in tandem with Daiwa Maggiore to snatch third in the 1400 meter Swan Stakes (G2) behind Copano Richard last month.  That run was encouraging - and after all, his form lines weren't so good going into 2012, either.  And speaking of Daiwa Maggiore, the four year-old colt has only been off the board four times in 15 starts - an ultra-consistent, very honest runner, indeed.

Several internationally known jockeys will be riding this race; besides Yutaka Take, who is aboard Tosen Ra, there is William Buick on Donau Blue, Mickael Barzalona riding  L'lle d'Aval, and Ryan Moore gets a leg up on Grand Prix Boss.

My top selections:
13) Danon Shark
12) Clarente
4) Daiwa Maggiore
2) Sadamu Patek