Another superstar beaten as Almond Eye only manages second in Yasuda Kinen

Tokyo: Yasuda Kinen (Grade 1)

Less than 24 hours after Pinatubo suffered a shock defeat in the 2,000 Guineas, international superstar Almond Eye could only finish second in the Yasuda Kinen behind Gran Alegria (Kazuo Fujisawa/Kenichi Ikezoe).

Almond Eye was once again red-hot favourite for the behind-closed-doors contest having landed the Grade 1 Victoria Mile on her last start, and raced towards the rear of the field with Gran Alegria a few places in front of her.

Ikezoe went for home inside the final quarter of a mile on Gran Alegria and took two lengths out of the field, but Christophe Lemaire was still looking comfortable on the multiple Grade 1-winning Almond Eye.

Gran Algeria wins the Yasuda KinenCredit: Jra

However, when asked for her effort, Almond Eye was unable to produce her sustained burst down the centre of the track that has become such a trademark of her performances, and was only able to stay on at the one pace to claim a modest second behind Gran Alegria.

Ikezoe said: “First of all, I must thank everyone at the stables who tuned her up so well. I was focused on keeping her in good rhythm and in a good position which all worked out beautifully.

"She just gave her best with such a tenacious run down the stretch — I was afraid up to the line that we were going to be caught, especially by Almond Eye."

He added: "I hurt myself when a chunk of grass hit my eye at the third corner, but it doesn’t hurt at all now!”

Lemaire felt Almond Eye put in a strong effort but that things did not work out for her.

He said: “We had a poor break but I think we recovered well and made a smooth and strong bid turning for home with Gran Alegria in aim. She showed her good turn of foot but she could have done better. The winner was just so strong, it wasn’t our day."

Almond Eye's trainer Sakae Kunieda added: "She was restless in the stalls, so she couldn't start well. She was looking good, though this race did come just three weeks after her last one. A response to her jockey's urging was not there today, but she has more chances in the autumn."

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