by Myra Lewyn

Japan’s reigning Horse of the Year, Vodka, will try to become only the second horse ever to win consecutive editions of the Tenno Sho (Autumn) (Jpn-G1) on Sunday at Tokyo.

After capturing last year’s Yasuda Kinen (Jpn-G1), Vodka won the Tenno Sho on November 2 by a nose from Daiwa Scarlet in a record time of 1:57.20 for 2,000 meters (9.94 furlongs) on turf. She followed with a third-place finish in the Japan Cup (Jpn-G1) on November 30 to conclude the year and land the nation’s top honor as well as champion older mare.

Two-time Horse of the Year Symboli Kris S won the Tenno Sho in 2002 and ’03.

Vodka gave two lackluster performances in group stakes in Dubai to begin 2009, but she romped to a seven-length triumph in the Victoria Mile (Jpn-G1) on May 17 in her return to racing in her native country and subsequently landed her second straight win in the Yasuda Kinen when she wore down champion Deep Sky to score by three-quarters of a lengths on June 7.

Vodka received a four-month break after the Yasuda Kinen and in her return she finished second by three-quarters of a length to Tenno Sho entrant Company in the Mainichi Okan (Jpn-G2) on October 11. She pleased trainer Katsuhiko Sumii in her final workout Tenno Sho, in which she will meet a tough field, half of which have won an international or Japanese Group 1 race.

"She worked extremely well,” Sumii said. “She's been able to stay in top form all year. And that's what you want to see from Vodka. If she can just be her usual self, then it's good enough to win races. In her work for the [Mainichi Okan], she had to be pushed a little bit by the jockey, but this time she didn't need any jostling; I was more than happy with the session.

“After the time off, she may have been under some pressure for her last race. It turned out to be a tough race for her because she was marked being out in front. She's much more relaxed now, having gotten one out of the way.

“Vodka will be at her very best for her second start of the season. A horse of her quality, you can only hope you've made no mistakes in the preparation and I like to think we haven't. We're up against another tough field this year, and we shouldn't take it for granted that we can run well like last year. Last year is last year."

Myra Lewyn is a Thoroughbred Times TODAY editor