Horse Racing

Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes: Admire Zoom Storms to Overwhelming Victory

With Yuga Kawada handling the reins, Admire Zoom showcased his speed en route to a 2½-length victory in the 1,600-meter Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes.

by
JRA News
December 15, 2024

In his third career start, fifth favorite Admire Zoom captured his first graded victory and first G1 title in the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes on Sunday, December 15 at Kyoto Racecourse.

Fourth in his debut over the same course and distance in October, the Maurice colt won by an overwhelming three-length margin in his following race on November 10, also at Kyoto at 1,600 meters before making his third start again at Kyoto's 1,600-meter course but this time against the best 2-year-olds.

On Sunday, trainer Yasuo Tomomichi claimed his 22nd JRA G1 title after winning the Japan Cup with Do Deuce on November 25. It was Tomomichi's third Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes victory following wins with Admire Mars (2018) and Do Deuce (2021).

For jockey Yuga Kawada, it was his second consecutive triumph in this race. He rode Jantar Mantar to victory in 2023 and also won the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes with Danon Premium (2017), Grenadier Guards (2020) and Jantar Mantar (2023).

It was Kawada's 28th career G1 title, his first since the 2024 NHK Mile Cup aboard Jantar Mantar on May 5. He's now tied with Masato Shibata and Mirco Demuro for the most Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes wins.

Admire Zoom broke smoothly and took advantage of an inside draw to join a three-horse rally for the early lead before settling nicely, chasing Daishin Ra (Norihiro Yokoyama's ride) in second.

Making use of his lasting speed, the bay colt quickly seized the front as the pacesetter weakened in the early stretch and continued to pull away uncontested to win by a comfortable 2½-length margin. (Watch the race on the JRA's YouTube Channel.)

Kawada Reacts to Admire Zoom's Winning Performance

"I'm glad that the colt was able to finish the season on a good note," Kawada said after Admire Zoom completed the race in 1 minute, 34.1 seconds. "His last race was also very impressive and I knew he had great potential to win this one too. However, he's not the easiest horse to keep in control so I was careful to deal with that.

"And today he was in good rhythm coming into the last corner, so I was able to bring out his best performance and I knew then we were unbeatable."

Added Kawada, "As I've said, he does need to be handled carefully, but he has outstanding ability to have a great future ahead."

How the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes Unfolded

Museum Mile was slow out of the gate but quickly advanced along the rails to midfield under Cristian Demuro (Mirco's younger brother) and then continued to improve position to reach right behind Admire Zoom before the third corner. Entering the homestretch, still with the winner in close view on his inside, the Leontes colt increased his pace to bid for the lead. But Museum Mile, the second favorite, was unable to match the winner's speed while besting the rest of the field by 2½ lengths.

Ninth favorite Lance of Chaos (Seinosuke Yoshimura) was positioned between horses in mid-division, but quickly found an opening entering the straight to reach contention with the eventual winner in view. But he was short of reaching both the winner and the runner-up although the Silver State colt opened the gap from the next finisher, Daishin Ra, by two lengths.

Race favorite Arte Veloce, seemingly keen after a sharp break, was held back by jockey Yutaka Take in mid-field and then further back approaching the last two corners. Entering the straight, the Maurice colt met traffic in the early stretch and failed to reach contention while he hustled along belatedly to finish fifth.