Regaleira
Japanese racehorse
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Regaleira (Japanese: レガレイラ, foaled April 12, 2021) is an active Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse.[1][2] She won the 2023 Hopeful Stakes, the 2024 Arima Kinen and the 2025 Queen Elizabeth II Cup. After her 2025 season, she was awarded the JRA Award for Best Older Filly or Mare.[4]
| Regaleira レガレイラ | |
|---|---|
2023 Hopeful Stakes | |
| Sire | Suave Richard[1] |
| Grandsire | Heart's Cry[1] |
| Dam | Roca[1] |
| Damsire | Harbinger[1] |
| Sex | Filly[1] |
| Foaled | April 12, 2021[1] |
| Country | Japan[1] |
| Color | Bay[1] |
| Breeder | Northern Farm[1] |
| Owner | Sunday Racing Co. Ltd.[2] |
| Trainer | Tetsuya Kimura[2] |
| Record | 12:5-0-1[2] |
| Earnings | 910,637,000 JPY[3] |
| Major wins | |
| Hopeful Stakes (2023) Arima Kinen (2024) Sankei Sho All Comers (2025) Queen Elizabeth II Cup (2025) | |
| Awards | |
| JRA Award for Best Older Filly or Mare (2025) | |
| Last updated on January 6, 2026 | |
She was named after Quinta da Regaleira, a palace located at Sintra, Portugal.[3]
Racing career
2023: two-year-old season
Regaleira debuted at the Hakodate Racecourse on July 9 in a two-year-old newcomer race on turf at a distance of 1,800 meters. Started at 1.4 odds favorite, her jockey, Christophe Lemaire, sat her in the middle of the pack, and on the final straight, she overtook the frontrunner to win the race.[5][6]
Following that, she competed in the Listed Ivy Stakes on October 21. Once again, she was the most favored horse. She ran in third position and made a determined effort to close the gap in the final stretch but fell short, finishing in third place behind Danon Ayers Rock.[7]
On December 28, she competed in her first graded stakes race and first Grade 1 race, the Hopeful Stakes at Nakayama Racecourse. After trailing in the rear during the early stages, she unleashed an exceptional finishing burst on the outside in the final stretch, overtaking Shin Emperor to claim victory. This marked the first time a filly won the Hopeful Stakes since it became an open race for both colts and fillies in 2000.[note 1] Additionally, this was the first victory by a filly in a mixed 2-year-old Grade 1 race since Tenmon won the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes in 1980. This was also the first Grade 1 victory for a Suave Richard progeny.[8][9]
2024: three-year-old season
In her first start as a three-year-old, Regaleira would go straight to Satsuki Shō. If she wins, it will be the first time in 76 years that a filly has won the Satsuki Sho since Hidehikari in 1948, making her the third filly in history to achieve this.[10] Additionally, Shunsuke Yoshida, the representative of Sunday Racing, has revealed plans to challenge the Tōkyō Yūshun (Japanese Derby).[11] Yoshida stated, 'Although the Satsuki Sho will be her next race, the jockey has not yet been decided. Since she was registered for the Classics, including both the Satsuki Sho and the Derby, right from the initial registration, we are hopeful for strong performances over longer distances. Given that she is challenging colts in the Satsuki Sho, the Derby is also an option.[11]
While a victory by a filly was highly anticipated for the first time in six years, she finished sixth in the Satsuki Sho. Following the race, she was shuttled to Northern Farm Tenei for rest.[12] Regarding her next race, the Sunday Thoroughbred Club mentioned on their website that they would "consider the options based on how she feels after the rest."[12] However, on April 28, the club announced that she would still compete in the Derby, held at Tokyo Racecourse on May 26.[13][14] This marked the first time a filly would race in both the Satsuki Sho and the Derby since the introduction of the grading system in 1984.[15] The club also announced on May 8 that Regaleira would return to Miho Training Center on May 10,[16] which she did as scheduled.[17] Notably, Christophe Lemaire, her regular jockey, was unable to return to Japan for the Satsuki Sho due to a fall in a race in Dubai that resulted in a punctured lung (traumatic pneumothorax), so Hiroshi Kitamura stepped in as a substitute. However, Lemaire will reunite with her for the Derby.[17][18]
On May 10, the Sunday Thoroughbred Club announced that Regaleira had been entered for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, scheduled at Longchamp Racecourse on October 6.[18] According to the explanation, "Given her performance so far and the advantageous weight of 55 kilograms for three-year-old fillies, depending on her performance in the Derby against colts, we are considering aiming for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe."[18]
Racing statistics
The information below is based on data available on JBIS Search,[19] and NetKeiba.[20]
| Date | Track | Race | Grade | Distance
(Condition) |
Entry | HN | Odds
(Favored) |
Finish | Time | Margins | Jockey | Winner
(Runner-up) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 – two-year-old season | ||||||||||||
| Jul 9 | Hakodate | 2YO Newcomer | 1,800 m (Firm) | 9 | 6 | 1.4 (1) | 1st | 1:49.8 | -0.2 | Christophe Lemaire | (Set Up) | |
| Oct 21 | Tokyo | Ivy Stakes | L | 1,800 m (Firm) | 6 | 3 | 1.5 (1) | 3rd | 1:48.4 | 0.2 | Christophe Lemaire | Danon Ayers Rock |
| Dec 28 | Nakayama | Hopeful Stakes | 1 | 2,000 m (Firm) | 16 | 13 | 3.1 (1) | 1st | 2:00.2[a] | -0.1 | Christophe Lemaire | (Shin Emperor) |
| 2024 – three-year-old season | ||||||||||||
| Apr 14 | Nakayama | Satsuki Shō | 1 | 2,000 m (Firm) | 17 | 10 | 3.7 (1) | 6th | 1:57.6 | 0.5 | Hiroshi Kitamura | Justin Milano |
| May 26 | Tokyo | Tōkyō Yūshun | 1 | 2,400 m (Firm) | 17 | 2 | 4.5 (2) | 5th | 2:25.0 | 0.7 | Christophe Lemaire | Danon Decile |
| Sep 15 | Chukyo | Rose Stakes | 2 | 2,000 m (Good) | 15 | 15 | 1.7 (1) | 5th | 2:00.3 | 0.4 | Christophe Lemaire | Queen's Walk |
| Nov 10 | Kyoto | Queen Elizabeth II Cup | 1 | 2,200 m (Good) | 17 | 7 | 1.9 (1) | 5th | 2:11.6 | 0.5 | Christophe Lemaire | Stunning Rose |
| Dec 22 | Nakayama | Arima Kinen | 1 | 2,500 m (Firm) | 15 | 8 | 10.9 (5) | 1st | 2:31.8 | 0.0 | Keita Tosaki | (Shahryar) |
| 2025 – four-year-old season | ||||||||||||
| Jun 15 | Hanshin | Takarazuka Kinen | 1 | 2,200 m (Good) | 17 | 17 | 4.9 (2) | 11th | 2:12.6 | 1.5 | Keita Tosaki | Meisho Tabaru |
| Sep 21 | Nakayama | All Comers | 2 | 2,200 m (Firm) | 11 | 4 | 3.3 (1) | 1st | 2:10.2 | -0.2 | Keita Tosaki | (Douradores) |
| Nov 16 | Kyoto | Queen Elizabeth II Cup | 1 | 2,200 m (Firm) | 16 | 7 | 2.3 (1) | 1st | 2:11.0 | -0.3 | Keita Tosaki | (Paradis Reine) |
| Dec 28 | Nakayama | Arima Kinen | 1 | 2,500 m (Firm) | 16 | 5 | 3.3 (1) | 4th | 2:31.7 | 0.2 | Christophe Lemaire | Museum Mile |
Legend:
Turf
- Notes:
- Set a track record for two-year-olds
Pedigree
| Sire Suave Richard ch. 2014 |
Heart's Cry b. 2001 |
Sunday Silence (USA) | Halo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wishing Well | |||
| Irish Dance | Tony Bin (IRE) | ||
| Buper Dance (USA) | |||
| Pirramimma (USA) dk.b. 2005 |
Unbridled's Song | Unbridled | |
| Trolley Song | |||
| Career Collection | General Meeting | ||
| River of Stars | |||
| Dam Roca b. 2012 |
Harbinger (GB) b. 2006 |
Dansili | Danehill (USA) |
| Hasili (IRE) | |||
| Penang Pearl (FR) | Bering (GB) | ||
| Guapa (GB) | |||
| Land's Edge b. 2006 |
Dance in the Dark | Sunday Silence (USA) | |
| Dancing Key (USA) | |||
| Wind in Her Hair (IRE) | Alzao (USA) | ||
| Burghclere (GB) (Family: 2-f)[22] |
- Her dam, Roca, is a 1-win horse. She placed 3rd in Queen Cup in 2015.
- She is related to the 2024 Oka Sho winner, Stellenbosch, through Land's Edge.
- Land's Edge's half brother is Deep Impact and Black Tide.
- Wind in Her Hair won the Grosser Preis von Bayern in 1995.