After losing his unbeaten record when second in April’s G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas), Croix Du Nord was on something of a recovery mission, and he delivered when it counted, running out a three-quarter length winner of the G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) on Sunday. Masquerade Ball (Duramente), third in the Satsuki Sho, charged home second, 1 1/2 lengths to the good of Shohei (Saturnalia).
The betting public felt the 2400 metres of the G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) was well within the son of Kitasan Black’s scope, and they duly made him the 11-10 favourite. On a quest to be the fifth Derby winner for Sunday Racing, the eventual winner raced in a stalking fourth behind the dueling leaders Satono Shining (Kizuna) and Ho O Atman (Duramente) with Sho Hei in third.
Ho O Atman took the lead outright once the field had entered the backstretch, and Yuichi Kitamura remained patient aboard Croix Du North. Trying to steal a march on his rivals, Ho O Atman opened up a double-digit margin at one point and still had a huge gap back to Satono Shining on the far turn. That lead shrank rapidly once the pacesetter reached the 500-metre mark and a cluster of horses appeared poised with their challenges. Churning away 100 metres later, Croix Du Nord found the front 1 1/2 furlongs from home and he held firm as the rallying Masquerade Ball came flying for second and a game Shohei took third. Satono Shining held on four fourth, a neck back of the third-place finisher.
“I felt it was my responsibility to make Croix du Nord a Derby winner ever since the colt won the Hopeful Stakes, so my feeling now is that I am relieved to have accomplished by mission,” said jockey Yuichi Kitamura. “The whole process since the win last year, including our runner-up effort in the Satsuki Sho, was a meaningful and precious learning experience for me. The colt felt great today and I was able to come into the race with every confidence so victory itself came as no surprise to me.”
A winner of his first three starts at two including the G2 Hai Nisai Stakes and G1 Hopeful Stakes, Croix Du Nord was second in the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) to Museum Mile (Leontes) in April. That rival finished sixth on Sunday.
Pedigree Notes
Kitasan Black is best known as the sire of globetrotting wunderkind Equinox, but Croix Du Nord paved new ground on Sunday with his victory. Equinox was second in the 2022 Japanese Derby, the same position as the son of Black Tide’s other Group 1 winner Sol Oriens, who placed in the race in 2023. Overall, the Shadai Stallion Station resident has sired 13 stakes winners with 10 of them at the group/graded level.
Rising Cross (Cape Cross) last graced the sales ring when she was a 73,333gns buy-back when offered by John Best Racing Stables during the Tattersalls Autumn HIT Sale of 2005. A winner of the G3 Prestige Stakes at two, the dark bay won the G2 Park Hill Stakes at three, and was also second in the G1 Oaks and third in the G1 Irish Oaks. Kept in training at five, she was third in the GIII Bewitch Stakes in the U.S. and retired with earnings of over $500,000.
Croix Du Nord is one of 13 foals out of Rising Cross, 10 of which have run with seven winners among them. Besides the Japanese Derby hero, her best is the Manhattan Café filly Earthrise, who was placed thrice at Group 3 level in Japan. Rising Cross’s latest offspring is a juvenile full-brother to the winner named Charing Cross, and a yearling filly by Satono Diamond. This is the extended family of G1 Derby winners Morston and Blakeney.
Sunday, Tokyo Japan
TOKYO YUSHUN (JAPANESE DERBY)-G1, ¥609,590,000, Tokyo, 6-1, 3yo, c/f, 2400mT, 2:23.70, fm.
1–CROIX DU NORD (JPN), 126, c, 3, by Kitasan Black (Jpn)
1st Dam: Rising Cross (GB) (GSP & G1SP-Eng, G1SP-Ire,
GSP-US, 501,841), by Cape Cross (Ire)
2nd Dam: Woodrising (GB), by Nomination (GB)
3rd Dam: Bodham (GB), by Bustino (GB)
O-Sunday Racing; B-Northern Farm (Jpn); T-Takashi Saito;
J-Yuichi Kitamura; ¥327,713,000. Lifetime Record: Ch. 2yo
Colt-Jpn, 5-4-1-0, ¥532,486,000. Click for the
free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Werk Nick
Rating: C. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Masquerade Ball (Jpn), 126, c, 3, Duramente (Jpn)–Mask Off
(Jpn), by Deep Impact (Jpn). O-Shadai Race Horse; B-Shadai
Farm (Jpn); ¥127,918,000.
3–Shohei (Jpn), 126, c, 3, Saturnalia (Jpn)–Oro Trajet (Jpn), by
Orfevre (Jpn). 1ST GROUP 1 BLACK TYPE. O-Tatsue Ishikawa;
B-Northern Farm (Jpn); ¥78,959,000.
Margins: 3/4, 1HF, NK. Odds: 1.10, 5.80, 13.40.
Also Ran: Satono Shining (Jpn), Eri King (Jpn), Museum Mile (Jpn), M’s (Jpn), Giovanni (Jpn), Feiern Kranz (Jpn), Lila Emblem (Jpn), Ho O Atman (Jpn), Kalamatianos (Jpn), Toppi Born (Jpn), Fandom (Jpn), Dragon Boost (Jpn), Nishino Agent (Jpn), Readiness (Jpn), Faust Rasen (Jpn).
Click for the JRA chart & video.
🇯🇵 🏆 #クロワドノール !!
The Tokyo Yushun – Japanese Derby – went to favored #13 CROIX DU NORD, a son of Kitasan Black. Yuichi Kitamura in the irons for Takashi Saito. pic.twitter.com/keqec1xG0u
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) June 1, 2025
AloJapan.com