NEWS PREVIEW
Korea: Cheongdam Dokki’s Rise Continues In Busan Mayor’s Cup
CheongdamDokki ventured outside of Seoul for the first time.
The four-year-old made himself right at home on the South-Coast, beating a strong set of rivals to win the Group 3 Busan Mayor’s Cup on Sunday afternoon confirming his status as the top-rated horse in Korea.
Sent off as the odds-on favourite for the 1 1⁄8 m race, often called the “Summer Grand Prix” such is its usual strength,CheongdamDokkibroke from the widest gate was unable to get to his favoured position on the lead.That was because King Of Ace got out much the quickest and under Franco Da Silva went on to set the pace.Aboard CheongdamDokki, jockey Lim Gi Won was happy enough to let the leader get on with it and settled at the front of the chasing pack with Cheonji Storm and 2nd favourite Triple Nine just behind him.
As the field entered the home straight, King Of Ace began to weaken and CheongdamDokki assumed command and while fellow Seoul-raider Cheonji Storm threatened to mount a challenge, CheongdamDokki comfortably saw him off in the final furlong to win by three-lengths on the line. Triple Nine, a three-time President’s Cup winner and former Horse of the Year, hit top gear late in the race but could only come home in 3rd place one ahead of last year’s winner I’m Your Father.
It was a breakout performance from Cheonji Storm, who was 6th in the 2016 Korean Derby behind eventual Triple Crown winner Power Blade, and who has matured greatly since missing seven months of last season. Triple Nine, making just his second start of 2018 ran well but was always likely to be too late reaching top speed to challenge CheongdamDokki over 1 1⁄8 m.
The win took CheongdamDokki, an American import by To Honor And Serve, to 11 wins from 16 career starts and was his second Korean Group race triumph following his victory in last autumn’s Group 2 KRA Cup Classic. He is unbeaten in 2018 with his last defeat coming in December’s Grand Prix Stakes over 1 7⁄16 m. It also gave him a new domestic rating of 130, the highest of any horse since the rating system in its current form began andCheongdamDokkiis now surely on a path to face the ultimate test in Korean racing – taking on the international visitors in September’s Keeneland Korea Cup. He’ll be no pushover.
The four-year-old made himself right at home on the South-Coast, beating a strong set of rivals to win the Group 3 Busan Mayor’s Cup on Sunday afternoon confirming his status as the top-rated horse in Korea. Sent off as the odds-on favourite for the 1 1⁄8 m race, often called the “Summer Grand Prix” such is its usual strength,CheongdamDokkibroke from the widest gate was unable to get to his favoured position on the lead.That was because King Of Ace got out much the quickest and under Franco Da Silva went on to set the pace.Aboard CheongdamDokki, jockey Lim Gi Won was happy enough to let the leader get on with it and settled at the front of the chasing pack with Cheonji Storm and 2nd favourite Triple Nine just behind him.
As the field entered the home straight, King Of Ace began to weaken and CheongdamDokki assumed command and while fellow Seoul-raider Cheonji Storm threatened to mount a challenge, CheongdamDokki comfortably saw him off in the final furlong to win by three-lengths on the line. Triple Nine, a three-time President’s Cup winner and former Horse of the Year, hit top gear late in the race but could only come home in 3rd place one ahead of last year’s winner I’m Your Father.
It was a breakout performance from Cheonji Storm, who was 6th in the 2016 Korean Derby behind eventual Triple Crown winner Power Blade, and who has matured greatly since missing seven months of last season. Triple Nine, making just his second start of 2018 ran well but was always likely to be too late reaching top speed to challenge CheongdamDokki over 1 1⁄8 m.
The win took CheongdamDokki, an American import by To Honor And Serve, to 11 wins from 16 career starts and was his second Korean Group race triumph following his victory in last autumn’s Group 2 KRA Cup Classic. He is unbeaten in 2018 with his last defeat coming in December’s Grand Prix Stakes over 1 7⁄16 m. It also gave him a new domestic rating of 130, the highest of any horse since the rating system in its current form began andCheongdamDokkiis now surely on a path to face the ultimate test in Korean racing – taking on the international visitors in September’s Keeneland Korea Cup. He’ll be no pushover.
