Satono Reve and 'Magic' Moreira bring up beautiful dozen of Grade 1 winners for Lord Kanaloa

Six-year-old Satono Reve made the breakthrough in Grade 1 company at Chukyo on Sunday morning to become his sire Lord Kanaloa's 12th individual top-level winner.

He raced on the inside of midfield under 'the Magic Man' Joao Moreira and made ground to hit the front at the final furlong, keeping on well to win the JRA's spring season sprint championship, the Takamatsunomiya Kinen, by three quarters of a length from the favourite Namura Clair. It was the third successive runner-up finish in the race for the six-year-old Mikki Isle mare who was a length-and-a-quarter ahead of Mama Cocha in third.

Satono Reve was bred by Shirai Stud Farm out of the Sakura Bakushin O's winning mare Ciliege and sold for ¥58,320,000 (£3,002,467/€3,758,764) at the 2019 JRHA Select Foal Sale to the Satomi Horse Company.

He is the first Grade 1 winner out Ciliege, who was successful five times, and is the dam of 11 named foals. She also has a four-year-old colt by California Chrome and a two-year-old son of Thunder Snow.

Ciliege is the dam of Grade 2 and Grade 3 winner Hakusan Moon who was twice placed behind Lord Kanaloa including in the 2013 running of the Takamatsunomiya Kinen. The son of Admire Moon was her first foal and found a place at stud.

She is also the dam of Group 3 Bavarian Classic winner Warring States who was trained by Andreas Wohler for Qatar Racing and the son of Victoire Pisa was sold by Jamie Railton for €90,000 at the 2017 Arqana Arc Sale.

This is the eighth win from 12 starts for Satono Reve who was a dual Grade 3-winning sprinter last year and finished third to Ya King Rising in the Group 1 Hong Kong  Sprint in December for owner Hajime Satomi, trainer Noriyuki Hori and breeder Shirai Bokujo. 

Satono Reve after winning the Grade 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen

The 17-year-old Lord Kanaloa was Japan's horse of the year and champion sprinter but has sired international stars over a variety of distances including the Dubai Turf winners Almond Eye and Panthalassa, and the Australian-bred Blue Diamond Stakes winner and sire Tagaloa.

Satono Reve is the third winner of the Takamatsunomiya Kinen sired by the Shadai stallion and the second bred on the Lord Kanaloa – Sakura Bakushin O cross after First Force who defeated Namura Clair in the 2023 running.

Brazilian jockey Joao Moreira renewed his partnership with Satono Reve and has obtained a JRA short-term license allowing him to ride in Japan from this week until April 28. He will be paired with Stellenbosch in the Osaka Hai (April 5, Hanshin), and Embroidery in the Oka Sho (April 13, Hanshin). 

Moreira won three consecutive graded stakes in same season last year including the Grade 1 Oka Sho with Stellenbosch and rode two winners at Nakayama on Saturday as his first day of the term. He rode Satono Reve three times in Listed races last year and was on board again at Sha Tin.

Moreira said of Satono Reve: "He is a highly capable horse that has achieved success in stakes races and he also ran a great race in Hong Kong, so I had always thought that he would win a Grade 1 race someday. I was lucky enough to be able to ride him at this time and I am happy that he was able to win a Grade 1 race. 

"I have ridden him before, so I knew him well, and the connections did not give me any specific instructions about the race. In the race, I was able to get off to a good start and get into a good position. The track conditions were fair, but the wind was strong and there was a headwind in the straight, so I created a wall in front of him until halfway through the race to avoid being affected by the headwind, and once I had some space at the 250m left, he responded well. I was able to race according to plan."

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