Caulfield Cup winner Boom Time will jump from barrier 10 of 17 in Sunday afternoon’s Grade 1 Japan Cup (2400m) sitting as a $26 shot at the title.
Caulfield Cup winner Boom Time jumps from barrier 10 in Sunday’s Japan Cup 2017 field at Tokyo. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.
Lindsay Park head trainer and Boom Time’s sole owner, Hall of Famer David Hayes is to date the only horseman to have taken over an Australian stayer and been successful in the prestigious Tokyo showdown.
He won the Japan Cup in 1990 with Better Loosen Up and this year makes the raid with his six-year-old Flying Spur entire Boom Time.
“Better Loosen Up was a much higher-rated horse in Australia than Boom Time, but Boom Time is a proven mile-and-a-half horse where Better Loosen Up was a proven 2000 metre horse at the time of the Japan Cup,” Hayes told Thoroughbred Daily News.
“I don’t think you can compare the two horses.”
Hayes also finished sixth in the Japan Cup results of 1994 with Jeune.
Two back Boom Time scored a shock win in the Group 1 $3 million Caulfield Cup (2400m) as a 50/1 outsider.
The galloper failed to bring that form into the ‘Race That Stops A Nation’ when outstayed in the two mile Group 1 $6 million Melbourne Cup (3200m) finishing 14 lengths away 15th.
“The Melbourne Cup, at two miles, was just a bit too far for him,” Hayes said.
“He’s actually bred to run about 1200 metres so I think he read his pedigree with about 600 metres to run.
“His best win was the Caulfield Cup and the horse he beat [Johannes Vermeer, 3rd] nearly won the Melbourne Cup [finishing second to Rekindling].
“The Caulfield Cup was a gruelling race that I think was run at the type of pace the Japan Cup may be run, so that’ll stand him in good stead.”
Boom Time and his Caulfield Cup winning hoop Cory Parish get the chance to shine on the international stage in the Japan Cup following a nice gallop at the dirt track on Thursday.
“We’re very excited to be here,” Hayes said yesterday.
“Being here this morning brought back a lot of happy memories.
“I’ve had two runners here, Better Loosen Up and Jeune, who was an unlucky sixth, so we’re hopeful we can be competitive and run right up there at the top of the order.”
The reigning Japan Cup winner Kitasan Black is the one to beat again dominating Japan Cup betting at $2.70 through Ladbrokes.com.au.
Champion jockey Yutaka Take rides the favourite and 2016 Japanese Racehorse of the Year for trainer Hisashi Shimizu.
Take had been gunning for the inside alley, but should still get things his way from barrier four.
“I think an inside draw is what I’d generally like for the Tokyo 2400m,” Take told the Japan Racing Association pre-barriers.
“He has never been that quiet in the gate.
“There’s always been the chance that he’ll crash into the front or stumble coming out but we’ve never been quite as lucky as we were in the Tenno Sho (Autumn).
“But, other than with a scenario like last time, he is extremely fast once out of the gate.”
The other familiar name to Aussie punters in the race meanwhile is that of Hugh Bowman, of Winx fame, the star hoop over riding $15 shot Cheval Grand from the inside barrier.
There are three previous Melbourne Cup winning jockeys aboard a chance in the Japan Cup field this season.
Ryan Moore (Protectionist, 2014) partners the Aidan O’Brien-trained Irish visitor Idaho ($21) from a wide gate 14 draw, Yasunari Iwata (Delta Blues, 2006) is on Rainbow Line ($26) and Christophe Lemaire (Dunaden, 2011) rides the $3.60 second favourite Rey de Oro.
2017 Japan Cup Barrier Draw: Cheval Grand (1), Rey de Oro (2), Guignol (3), Kitasan Black (4), Sounds Of Earth (5), Iquitos (6), Decipher (7), Soul Stirring (8), Rainbow Line (9), Boom Time (10), Makahiki (11), Satono Crown (12) Sciacchetra (13), Idaho (14), One And Only (15), Yamakatsu Ace (16), Last Impact (17).
Check out the latest Japan Cup 2017 odds on Boom Time and his rivals ahead of Sunday now through Ladbrokes.com.au.
