Race favorite Vermilion extended his winning streak to two with a record win in the Japan Cup Dirt Saturday at Tokyo Racecourse.
The 5-year-old son of El Condor Pasa trumped a field of 16 that included three runners from overseas, clocking 2 minutes, 6.7 seconds over 2,100 meters of dirt. The time shaved 1.3 seconds off the record set in 2005 following the course renovation in 2003.
Yutaka Take described the run as "perfect" from start to finish and both trainer and jockey cited the horse's ever-increasing mental maturity as a key factor in the win.