Japan takes centre stage in Korea Cup and Korea Sprint
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Jockey Takayuki Yano raising his arms after Diktaean landed back-to-back wins in the Grade 2 Korea Cup (1,800m) on Sept 6.
PHOTO: KOREA RACING AUTHORITY
Sharon Zhang
Japan underlined its dominance by sweeping both the Grade 2 Korea Cup (1,800m) and Grade 3 Korea Sprint (1,200m) at LetsRun Park in Seoul on Sept 6.
Diktaean successfully defended his title in the Korea Cup – which was elevated from Grade 3 to its international Grade 2 status this year – when he impressed with a strong last-to-first victory in the 1.6 billion won (S$1.51 million) staying feature this time.
But it was not without some anxious moments.
Ridden again by Takayuki Yano, the Katsunori Arayama-trained eight-year-old landed at the tail of the field in a race dictated by fellow Japanese contender Sunday Funday (Yamato Tsunoda).
Halfway up the back straight, Yano was seen bustling Diktaean up from the outside and sat in third behind Sunday Funday and Clean One (Seo Seung-un).
While Clean One soon faltered for the Korea camp, Diktaean gave chase behind the Akishi Higashida-trained Sunday Funday in the home straight.
The $12 shot not only showed grit when he loomed past the leader at the 200m, but also that he had plenty left in the tank when he drew clear to win by six lengths.
Amazing Khan (Jin Kyum) finished the best among the home team, albeit another 11 lengths away in third.
Diktaean, a son of King Kamehameha, is the third Japanese galloper to have achieved back-to-back victories in the Korea Cup after London Town in 2017 and 2018 and Crown Pride in 2023 and 2024.
Yano heaved a sigh of relief after the 2025 Group 1 Tokyo Daishoten (2,000m) winner proved his previous win in Seoul’s deep sand was no fluke.
“I came here to win. I was a little nervous until the first corner, but now I’m relieved,” he said.
“Compared to last year, I’m not sure if the pace has gotten faster, but he did his best to pick up.
“I was hoping for a sustained run in the end, and he has done it.
“This is the third time a Japanese horse has won the race back-to-back after London Town and Crown Pride. I think Japanese fans will love this (result) very much and I thank them for their support.
“If we were to be invited again next year, we would aim for a third consecutive win.”
It was also a Japan 1-2 in the 1.4 billion won Grade 3 Korea Sprint (1,200m) run one race earlier.
After the field of 16 turned for home, it soon turned into a showdown between two Japanese runners, American Stage (Ryusei Sakai) and Dragon Welds (Keita Tosaki, $11) in the final 200m.
But it was Dragon Welds, a four-year-old grey son of Frosted trained by Hideaki Fujiwara, who took the upper hand and won by two lengths from American Stage.
Korean runner Vincero Cavallo (Choi Bum-hyun) had to settle for third behind the Japanese duo.
Last year’s winner and Hong Kong contender Self Improvement (Dylan Mo) was disappointing at his second attempt, only finishing third-last.
Tosaki said the race went according to plan for Dragon Welds after he drew a good middle gate in 7.
“The draw was good, so I followed the plan to race forward, and I hoped we could follow in third spot or so. Luckily, I was able to run just as planned,” he said.
“He was a bit excited in the paddock because of the loud cheers (from the crowd). I was also quite excited, but when I got on the horse, I was in a good state and able to ride well.
“I’m happy to be able to compete in Korea, a place I wanted to come. I’m also very happy to be able to win in such a great race.”
Dragon Welds will qualify for a spot in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint (1,200m) while Diktaean has gained a berth in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (1,600m) at Keeneland on Oct 31.
Diktaean also earned a start in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile last year but connections chose not to make the trip.
Sharon Zhang