Daring Tact remained unbeaten when triumphing in Sunday’s Gr.1 Oka Sho, the Japanese 1,000 Guineas, at Hanshin to give her sire, the Gr.1 Japan Cup and Gr.1 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St Leger) hero Epiphaneia (Symboli Kris S), a classic winner from his first crop.
Held up early on, she was settled midfield as Smile Kana, Nine To Five and Maltese Diosa shared the early lead. The favourite and last season’s champion juvenile filly Resistencia made an early move to to join the leaders at the home turn and go clear.
By this stage Daring Tact had got to the outside and was ridden to improve up the middle of the track but still with plenty to do.
Resistencia and Smile Kana had drawn a couple of lengths clear and were duelling from the top of the straight, but neither had any answer to the finish of Daring Tact who chased them down close home to score by a length and a half over Resistencia with Smile Kana a further length and three quarters away.
It was Daring Tact’s third win from as many starts, having broken her maiden at Kyoto at the end of last year and adding the Listed Elfin Stakes at the same venue in February.
‟I concentrated on her rhythm more than where to position her today. We were far behind the leaders and desperate in catching up but she responded beautifully and stretched incredibly all the way to the line,” jockey Kohei Matsuyama said.
“I’m not worried about the added distance in the coming Japanese Oaks but she does have issues to work on such as being relaxed. I’m praying that the day we can race in front of the crowd again will come soon,”
Bred by Hasegawa Bokujo, Daring Tact’s granddam Daring Heart (Sunday Silence) won the Gr.3 Fuchu Himba and is a half-sister to the Gr.1 Louisiana Downs Super Derby winner and sire Ecton Park (Forty
The fourth dam is the Gr.2 Arlington Matron Handicap winner Impetuous Girl (Briartic), who became the dam of triple Gr.1 winner Banker’s Lady (Nijinsky), herself the dam of the dual Gr.2 winner and sire Banker’s Gold (Forty Niner).