Justin Palace swept to a commanding victory in the Tenno Sho (Spring) (G1) April 30 at a rebuilt Kyoto Racecourse as the favorite, Titleholder, and the early pacesetter, African Gold, both failed to finish the marathon.
Jockey Kazuo Yokoyama allowed Titleholder, last year's winner and ranked No. 3 among the Longines World's Best Racehorses, to idle back at the top of the stretch. The Japan Racing Association cited "lameness in his right foreleg" and said the 5-year-old by Duramente was slated for further examination.
African Gold, an 8-year-old Darley-bred gelding by Stay Gold, dropped back before the final bend of the 3,200-meter (about two miles) race, reportedly with atrial fibrillation.
Those defections from the front opened the way for Justin Palace, a 4-year-old colt by Deep Impact. He was second-favorite in the Tenno Sho after winning the Hanshin Daishoten (G2) in March but had yet to win at the top level. With Christophe Lemaire at the controls, he emphatically put that milestone behind him.
After racing in midpack, Justin Palace moved up entering the stretch and set out after Deep Bond, who had inherited the lead. He came with a rush to get to the front 300 meters out and won by 2 1/2 lengths in a rather undistinguished time of 3:16.10. Kitasan Black holds the race and course record of 3:12.50, set in 2017.
It's JUSTIN PALACE and @christo68914587 taking out the Tenno Sho Spring!
— World Horse Racing (@WHR) April 30, 2023
He defeats Deep Bond and Silver Sonic to win Japan's longest G1 race 🔥 and it's another new G1 winner for Deep Impact!#天皇賞 #ジャスティンパレスpic.twitter.com/wZIQxOwPtL
Longshot Silver Sonic finished third, another length in arrears.
Lemaire said Justin Palace's auspicious breakthrough performance in Kyoto's group 1 unveiling was a promise of good things to come.
"I'm really happy to have won the first Tenno Sho held at the newly renovated Kyoto Racecourse," Lemaire said.
"The horse was calm throughout the race and I was sure that he was going to win when we moved up behind Deep Bond and entered the straight. He has become a super horse over long distances so I think he will do well in races like the Arima Kinen (G1) in the future."
This year's Arima Kinen, the final major race of the year for older horses, is slotted for Christmas Eve at Nakayama Racecourse.
Justin Palace, bred by Northern Racing and carrying the silks of Masahiro Miki, posted two wins and a second in the Hopeful Stakes (G1) in his 2-year-old year. He made only a limited impact on the classics, finishing ninth in both the Satsuki Sho (Japanese Two Thousand Guineas-G1) and the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby-G1).
He picked things up later that year, scoring his first graded stakes win in the Kobe Shimbun Hai (G2) in September, and then was third in the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger-G1). Older horses in that year's Arima Kinen proved too much as he reported seventh.
Justin Palace was produced by Palace Rumor, a daughter of Royal Anthem, winner of the Juddmonte International (G1) at York and second in the Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T) at Gulfstream Park, both in 1999.
Palace Rumor counted the 2006 Audubon Oaks at Ellis Park among five wins from 16 starts. The dam of 2013 Belmont Stakes winner Palace Malice was sold to Katsumi Yoshida for $1.1 million in 2013 at The November Sale at Fasig-Tipton, consigned by Hill 'n' Dale Sales Agency.
The renovation of the Kyoto facility took nearly two and a half years and included the demolition of the grandstand and the construction of a six-story replacement. The configuration of the outer turf track was smoothed slightly and the parade ring was modified and graced with a new statue of 2020 Japanese Triple Crown winner Contrail.
The project reportedly cost ¥76 billion (about US$568 million).
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