It was a momentous day for Rachel King as she became the first female to win a JRA Group race when lifting the 6-year-old Heart’s Cry (JPN) gelding Chuck Nate to victory in the Group II The American Jockey Club Cup (2200m) at Nakayama on Sunday.
After looking beaten on the turn, the Noriyuki Hori-trained gelding rallied under hard riding to edge the King Kamehameha 8-year-old entire Boccherini by a nose, with the 7-year-old Lord Kanaloa entire Chrominance one-and-a-quarter lengths back in third.
It was the first Group success for the admirably consistent Chuck Nate, who has missed a place in just two of his 15 starts, with his overall record advancing to five wins, a second, and seven thirds.