Son of late lamented Duramente proves 90-1 Group 1 stunner for Murzabayev

Big outsider Dura Erede provided jockey Bauyrzhan Murzabayev with a notable winner at Nakayama on Wednesday, getting up by a nose to win the Group 1 Hopeful Stakes.

The Kazakhstan-born rider has been Germany's champion jockey for the past three years and was winning for the first time at the top level in Japan.

Murzabayev and 90-1 shot Dura Erede caught Top Knife, who looked all over the winner in the home straight, in the last stride to win the important contest for two-year-old colts and fillies over a mile and a quarter on the turf.

King's Reign was a length and a quarter back in third, with Phantom Thief fourth and favourite Mikki Cappuccino fifth. David Egan finished tenth of the 18 runners aboard J Palms.

Dura Erede is a son of Duramente out of Orfevre's daughter Marchesa, a half-sister to the 2016 Kikuka Sho Grade 1 and Arima Kinen winner Satono Diamond.

The Manabu Ikezoe-trained colt was winning his second race on what was his fifth start.

In 2022, the offspring of Duramente, who died last year, won six top-flight races as the Tenno Sho Spring and Takarazuka Kinen went to Titleholder, the Oka Sho (1,000 Guineas) and Yushun Himba (Oaks) to Stars On Earth, and the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies to Liberty Island, before Dura Erede struck.

Deep Impact, King Kamehameha and Kitasan Black have each sired two Group 1 winners this year.

The winning rider Murzabayev said: "I'm very happy. I was happy when I won a Group 1 for the first time in Germany, but I am very happy to win a Group 1 for the first time in Japan. I didn't know if we had won or not.

"I wasn't able to get good results in the other races today, so I'm glad that we were able to conclude like this at the end. I had the impression that he was a good horse from the time I got on him in training."

Trainer Ikezoe added: "He has got better training session by training session, and when I watched him at the paddock I felt he was in good condition.

"I asked the jockey just to keep to a good rhythm, and he rode him as I asked. When I watched the finish, I thought he was second, so it was like a dream.

"He will grow, so I am very much looking forward to the future with him."

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