A good day for Fastnet Rock in Japan on Sunday with his 3yo Kia Ora Stud-bred daughter Classic Cocoa putting a 7-length margin on her nearest pursuer in an allowance race over 1500m at Sapporo while over at Niigata, Fastnet Rock’s Irish-bred daughter Reset In Blue produced the 2yo Gleneagles colt Shock Action (IRE) an impressive winner of the day’s feature the Group III Niigata Nisai Stakes (1600m).
Ridden by Keita Tosaki for trainer Ryuji Okubo, Shock Action (IRE) defeated his Godolphin stablemate Blue Symphony (Screen Hero), who is a son of the Japanese-bred Commands mare Bluestone, by one and three-quarter lengths to take his record to two wins and a third from three starts while crediting his Coolmore-based stallion Gleneagles with his first stakes winner in Japan, a feat his own sire Galileo is yet to achieve.
Shock Action (IRE) is the first foal of Reset In Blue who was a very smart performer in Italy for Stefano Botti. Her seven wins included two Listed Stakes and was Group III placed and was fourth in the Group 1 Premio Lydia Tesio and Group 1 Oaks d'Italia.
While the Nisai Stakes was run on a firm track at Niigata, the turf was described as yielding on a bleak day at Sapporo, which was just fine by Classic Cocoa who swept around the field to take the lead around the home turn and kept increasing her margin.
It was the second win in four starts for the Takayuki Yasuda-trained filly who was purchased by Katsumi Yoshida for $280,000 out of the Kio Ora Stud draft at the 2019 Magic Millions Yearling Sale.
A brother to Classic Cocoa was purchased by DGR Thoroughbreds for $150,000 at Inglis Easter this year.
They are out of the stakes-winning Thorn Park mare Alberton Park who is a half-sister to Group II winner Lady Alberton (Golan) and Western Star (High Chaparral0 the dam of the Group 1 WRC Captain Cook Stakes winner Wyndspelle (Iffraaj).
This is the family of Newgate Farm’s highly popular new boy Brutal (O’Reilly) the winner of the Group 1 ATC Doncaster Mile.
