Nui Sociere Watches Going to Sky Win the Kikuka Sho After a Runaway Early Pace

NIJISANJI — Going to Sky, ridden by Yutaka Take, won the Kikuka Sho at Kyoto Racecourse on Sunday, narrowly beating Bastelle in the stretch after King Glory had led the field by a wide margin for most of the 3,000 meters. Nui Sociere followed the race live with her audience in a roughly two-and-a-half-hour watch-along, a *doji shicho* in Japanese.

She opened by calling the Kikuka Sho her favorite race and going through the field. If she were to pick a pivot horse, she said, it would be Robchen, who was bidding for the Triple Crown. She was wary of Bastelle’s ability to settle over 3,000 meters and said she was leaving the horse out. In the paddock she singled out Going to Sky for its balance and its hindquarters, and she said she was struggling to decide how to bet.

“It really means a lot to me that a Contrail offspring took it.” — Nui Sociere, after the race

When the gates opened, Robchen broke poorly and King Glory went to the front at a pace Nui called remarkable. Chat put the gap at about 20 lengths. Robchen ran well back and wide, and in the stretch Going to Sky came through along the inside as Bastelle challenged. Nui said Going to Sky had looked good and that the result made her very happy. Sanono Greater, a long shot she had flagged beforehand, finished fourth, and she groaned that it was close. Danon History was third, and Robchen finished 14th.

Take’s win was the sixth Kikuka Sho of his career, and Nui noted it was his third G1 victory this year. She said it was meaningful that Contrail’s offspring had won, and that the result was its first G1 victory. She also praised Kawada’s ride on Bastelle for getting the horse to settle.

Afterward she read out viewers’ betting picks, many of them built around Robchen. Nui admitted she had not put Going to Sky on her own tickets despite having praised it in the paddock. Chat then pointed out that the winner’s draw, gate 5 and horse number 9, could be read as a Goku joke, and that Sunday was the birthday of the voice actress who plays Goku. Nui groaned that nobody had told her sooner. The stream drew 134 Super Chats.

Nui closed by looking ahead to the Tenno Sho (Autumn) the following week, reading out the horses registered for it, and said she would watch it with viewers.