3 minute read

Blast Onepiece, the only three-year-old in the race, won Japan’s $7.5m Arima Kinen at Nakayama on Sunday with Hugh Bowman’s mount Cheval Grand third.

Blast Onepiece, a $10 chance trained by Masahiro Otake, gave his jockey Kenichi Ikezoe his fourth win in the Arima Kinen, Japan’s most popular race with 10 of the 16 runners selected by the votes of the public.

Blast Onepiece held off the favourite Rey De Oro to win by a neck with Cheval Grand making up a lot of ground late to finish third.

Brenton Avdulla also rode in the race with his mount Satono Diamond failing to figure in his last career start.

Blast Onepiece has raced only seven times for five wins, his two unplaced efforts being fifth in the Japanese Derby and fourth in the St Leger.

Kiseki tried to lead all the way but was nabbed late as BLAST ONEPIECE and Kenichi Ikezoe fend off favourite REY DE ORO

A huge G1 double for Silk Racing who won the Japan Cup with Almond Eye pic.twitter.com/tWwIsN1pva

— World Horse RacingDecember 23, 2018