Third favorite Queens Ring came from behind to beat long shot Sing with Joy down the final stretch, winning by a neck to claim her first Grade One victory at the Queen Elizabeth II Cup on Sunday.
Queens Ring waited to break free from the middle pack until after the last turn at the 2,200-meter Kyoto Racecourse and clocked 2 minutes, 12.9 seconds, giving Italian jockey Mirco Demuro his first title in the race on turf for fillies and mares aged three years and up.
The victory was worth ¥93 million prize money, while trainer Keiji Yoshimura picked up his first G1 title on the Japan Racing Association circuit.
Queens Ring, a four-year-old filly born in May 2012, had failed to post a win as a three-year-old after finishing fourth at the Oka-sho in April and second at the Shuka-sho in October, both last year.
Second choice Mikki Queen finished third, while defending champion and top favorite Marialite finished sixth.