Johar, headed to Japan Cup.
The Thoroughbred Corporation's Johar, dead-heat winner of the John Deere Breeders' Cup Turf (gr. IT), heads a contingent of five U.S. horses for which invitations have been accepted for the Japan Cup (Jpn-I) and Japan Cup Dirt (Jpn-I) Tokyo Racecourse.The Japan Cup Dirt will be run Nov. 29 and the Japan Cup on Nov. 30.In addition to Johar, the Richard Mandella-trained colt who has earned nearly $1.5-million, Japan Cup invitations have been accepted for Gary Tanaka's Sarafan, the Neil Drysdale-trained gelding who missed the Breeders' Cup after suffering a minor illness, and Edmund A. Gann and Flaxman Holdings' Denon, the 5-year-old son of Pleasant Colony who won the Manhattan Handicap (gr. IT) for trainer Bobby Frankel. Sarafan finished second to Falbrav in the 2002 Japan Cup.Also accepting Japan Cup invitations have been French-based Ana Marie and Ange Gabriel and Australia-based Fields of Omagh.U.S. horses accepting invitations to compete in the Japan Cup Dirt are William L. Currin and Alvin Eisman's Outta Here, a 3-year-old son of Dehere who won the Delta Jackpot Stakes for trainer Currin, and Lee and Ty Leatherman's Fleetstreet Dancer, a 5-year-old gelding who is winless in stakes but has finished second or third in five graded races for trainer Doug O'Neill.
