Resistencia (horse)

Resistencia was ridden in all of 2019 starts by Yuichi Kitamura. Resistencia made her track debut in a contest for previously unraced juveniles over 1400 metres at Kyoto Racecourse on 14 October and won from Key Dia and sixteen others.[5] On 2 November, over the same course and distance, the filly was stepped up in class for the Grade 3 Fantasy Stakes and started at odds of 12.6/1 in a fifteen-runner field. After racing in second place for most of the way she took the lead early in the straight and kept on well to win by a length from the favourite Dream Castle with Clear Sound a neck away in third place.[6]

On 8 December at Hanshin Racecourse Resistencia was moved up to the highest level for the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies over 1600 metres and was made the 10.2/1 fourth choice in the betting behind Ria Amelia (Artemis Stakes), Woman's Heart (Niigata Nisai Stakes) and Cravache d'Or (runner-up in the Saudi Arabia Royal Cup). Of the other twelve runners only Christie, Maltese Diosa, Yamakatsu Mermaid and Lotus Land started at odds of less than 160/1. Resistencia took the lead from the start and was never challenged, drawing away from her opponents in the straight to win by five lengths and a nose from Maltese Diosa and Cravache d'Or. Her winning time of 1:32.7 was a new record for the race, beating the 1:33.1 set by Vodka in 2006. After the race Kitamura commented "I knew she had the necessary speed as long as she broke well so I concentrated on keeping her relaxed in the middle stages. We were hoping she would mature mentally and I'm happy to see that she was calm and relaxed today. She was so strong and has so much potential. Her future is definitely something to look forward to".[7]

In January 2020, at the JRA Awards for 2019, Resistencia was unanimously named Best Two-Year-Old Filly, taking all 274 votes.[8] In the official Japanese rankings Resistencia was rated the best two-year-old filly of 2019, six pounds ahead of Ria Amelia and Woman's Heart.[9]

On her first run as a three-year-old Resistencia started 2/5 favourite for the Grade 2 Tulip Sho over 1600 metres at Hanshin on 7 March but after leading for most of the way she sustained her first defeat as she was overtaken in the closing stages and finished third, beaten a nose and one and a quarter lengths by Maltese Diosa and Cravache d'Or. Despite her defeat in the Tulip Sho the filly started favourite for the Oka Sho over the same course and distance five weeks later. With Yutaka Take taking over the ride from Kitamura she settled in second place behind the front-running Smile Kana before taking the lead in the straight but was run down in the final strides and beaten into second place by Daring Tact.[10] Christophe Lemaire took the ride when Resistencia was matched against colts in the Grade 1 NHK Mile Cup at Tokyo Racecourse on 10 May and started the 2/1 favourite in an eighteen-runner field. The race was dominated from the start by Resistencia and the colt Lauda Sion, with the filly getting the better of an early struggle for the lead before succumbing in the closing stages and finishing second, beaten one and a half lengths by her male rival.[11] Resistencia sustained a leg fracture in the race and was off the track for six months.[12]

Resistencia returned to the track for the Grade 1 Mile Championship over 1600 metres at Hanshin on 22 November in which she was ridden by Kitamura and went off the 8.9/1 fourth choice in a seventeen-runner field. She took the lead from the start and maintained her advantage until the last 200 metres when she was overtaken and faded to finish eighth behind Gran Alegria.[13]