Teruya Yoshida's homebred Logotype, Japan's champion 2-year-old male last season, set a turf course record at Nakayama April 14 in winning the $2,527,000 Satsuki Sho (Jpn-I), or Japanese Two Thousand Guineas, the first jewel in Japan's Triple Crown.
The 7-2 favorite, Logotype won by a half-length over highly regarded Epiphaneia after racing mid-division in the 18-horse field and storming wide off the home turn to take charge from fading the front-runners. With an energetic rally uphill in the final 200 meters, he turned back a determined bid by group III winner Epiphaneia to prevail.
The Lohengrin colt was timed in 1:58 for 2,000 meters (about 1 1/4 miles) under Italian jockey Mirco Demuro, who won the race for the third time following his back-to-back victories with Neo Universe in 2003 and Daiwa Major in 2004.
Interestingly, the top four favorites finished in the order of their odds, with 4-1 second-favorite Epiphaneia outfinishing multiple group III winner and third choice Codino, by 1 1/4 lengths. Fourth choice Camino Tassajara checked in another 1 1/4 lengths back.
Trained by Tsuyoshi Tanaka, who enjoyed his second win at the top level on the flat, Logotype won his fourth consecutive race and fifth overall from eight career starts.
The dark bay or brown colt closed 2012 with a 35-1 upset win over Codino in the Asahi Hai Futurity (Jpn-I), Japan's season-defining race for juvenile males, at Nakayama to secure divisional honors. He opened his 3-year-old campaign at the same course by winning the Fuji TV Sho Spring Stakes (Jpn-II) March 17 and added to his Nakayama win streak with the Satsuki Sho victory.
Logotype, who was bred by Yoshida's Shadai Farm, is from the second crop of accomplished Japanese miler Lohengrin, who stands at Lex Stud in Hokkaido. His dam is the winning Sunday Silence mare Stereotype.
Japan's Triple Crown series continues with the Tokyo Yushun (Jpn-I), or Japanese Derby, at 2,400 meters (about 1 12 miles) May 26 at Tokyo. The series finale is the Kikuka Sho (Jpn-I), or Japanese St. Leger, at 3,000 meters (about 1 7/8 miles) Oct. 20 at Kyoto.