is a Japanese racehorse. His major wins include the 2024 Kikka Sho and St Lite Kinen.
The horse's name, meaning "sophisticated", is a reference to her dam's name.
Racing career 2023: two-year-old season Urban Chic debuted in a race held over a course of 1,800 meters at Sapporo Racecourse with Takeshi Yokoyama as his jockey. He ran most of the race among the pack before passing over the rest on the final stretch, clinching his first victory. Urban Chic also won his next race, the Hyakunichiso Tokubetsu, by passing the pack from behind.
2024: three-year-old season Urban Chic started the season off with his first graded race, the Keisei Hai held on January 14th at Nakayama Racecourse. While he was able to cover the last three furlongs in 33.9 seconds, he was unable to cover for the loss of meandering in to the inside, leading him to finish second behind future Derby winner Danon Decile. This marked his first defeat. In his first Grade I race, the Satsuki Shō, he finished fourth. At the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby), he was unable to make a pass and finished 11th.
He spent the summer recuperating and came back to the turf at the St Lite Kinen in Autumn. After running among the pack on the inside of the field, he slowly started to push up his position before showing immense speed on the final stretch. He passed the others in the field and managed to score his first graded race victory after his unimpressive last race.
On the Kikka Sho held on October 20, after moving up from the middle to the front of the pack, quickly passed the rest of the pack on the final stretch, leading the horse to win his first Grade I title. This was the third St Lite Kinen winner, after Symboli Rudolf and Kitasan Black, to win the Kikka Sho since Japan adopted graded race. Also, at this race, the groom in charge, Makoto Gunji, won the .
Urban Chic was announced to end his season at the Arima Kinen in December, sticking with Lemaire as his jockey. As the race favourite, he missed his break but recovered well into the middle position, running in the inside lane. He had a good striking position leading up to the third corner, but he struggled to climb uphill in the later phase and finished in sixth place.
2025: four-year-old season Opening up the new season, Urban Chic ran in the Nikkei Sho at the end of March. On a slightly less firm track, the horse broke well at the start. He took the final corner with ease but failed to accelerate on the hill section after passing it. He finished the race in third place behind the winner, Meiner Emperor. The next race he joined would be the Takarazuka Kinen in June, his first ever grade 1 race in five months. When the gates opened, he was out struck and ran the most of the race as the backmarker in 14th position. He never improved along the way and finished in 14th place in the end.
He was rested for the rest of the summer and resumed his season at the Tenno Sho (Autumn) in early November. His handler this time around would be a short-term licensed jockey from France, Alexis Pouchin. In the early phase, Pouchin rode him mostly at the second most rear from the pack. He gradually made his chase as the race progressed, but there was too much ground to cover once he reached the final straight. He finished in fifth place. After this race, his team accepted an invitation to join the Hong Kong Vase, which would be his first-ever overseas race. Lemaire, who made his comeback this race, pushed Urban Chic to be among the leading pack as the race started. This strategy did not work out as he gassed out in the final straight and fell back in the pecking order. He finished second last in tenth place that day. Lemaire said that Urban Chic was relaxed in the front but just could not reach the speed to close it out. The horse returned home on December 17 and rested for the next year campaign.
2026: five-year-old season Early in this year, his team rejected two race offer from Qatar and Dubai because they decided to put him in the Kinko Sho instead. He would be switching jockeys again on this occasion, as Kosei Miura would take the reins. In the pre-race workout, Takei explained that they found his finishing kick lacking, but his movements, responses, and physical condition were excellent. He performed terribly on race day as he finished dead last, 14th place behind Shake Your Heart. Miura said he was disappointed that the horse could not fulfill his true potential on the day. Due to recent poor performance, the team sent him back to Northern Farm as they trained for the summer race, which would be the Niigata Kinen in late August.
Approaching race day, Takei explained the horse's current condition. He said that the horse was not breathing well, but it had improved in training. He also claimed that despite this being the first time he raced at Niigata, he was confident on the adaptability of the said horse. Contrary to what the trainer said, Miura, who's continued as his jockey, felt that the track did not suit him and struggled early. He made a late push in the final furlongs and finished in fifth place that day. Miura commented on how he tried to alleviate the pain of coming out of the gate (referencing to his botched start at last season's Hong Kong Vase) during the race and also praised that the horse made good ground to become a good competitive GI horse once again.
Racing Form The form below is based on information available on netkeiba and JBIS.
DateTrackRaceGradeDistance(Condition)EntryHNOdds(Favored)FinishTimeMarginJockeyWinner(Runner-up)2023 – two-year-old seasonAug 13Sapporo2YO Debut Race1,800m (Firm)1062.3 (1)1:53.1 0.0Takeshi Yokoyama(Victoria Doll)Nov 5TokyoHyakunichiso TokubetsuL2,000m (Firm)944.1 (3)1:59.4 -0.1Takeshi Yokoyama (Margot Solare)2024 – three-year-old seasonJan 14NakayamaKeisei HaiGIII2,000m (Firm)1563.0 (2)2:00.60.1Takeshi YokoyamaDanon DecileApr 14NakayamaSatsuki ShōGI2,000m (Firm)18914.2 (6)4th1:57.50.4Takeshi YokoyamaJustin MilanoMay 26TokyoTōkyō YūshunGI2,400m (Firm)1888.3 (4)11th2:25.4 1.1Takeshi YokoyamaDanon DecileSep 16NakayamaSt Lite KinenGII2,200m (Firm)1413.1 (2)2:11.6 -0.3Christophe Lemaire (Cosmo Kuranda)Oct 20KyotoKikka ShoGI3,000m (Firm)18133.7 (2)3:04.1 -0.4Christophe Lemaire(Redentor)Dec 22NakayamaArima KinenGI2,500m (Firm)1532.8 (1)6th2:32.30.5Christophe LemaireRegaleira2025 – four-year-old seasonMar 29NakayamaNikkei ShoGII2,500m (Good)1571.7 (1)2:36.20.1Christophe LemaireMeiner EmperorJun 15HanshinTakarazuka KinenGI2,200m (Good)171310.6 (6)12th2:13.52.4Christophe LemaireMeisho TabaruNov 2TokyoTenno Sho (Autumn)GI2,000m (Firm)14228.2 (11)5th1:58.80.2Alexis PouchinMasquerade BallDec 14Sha TinHong Kong VaseGI2,400m (Good)1164.5 (4)10th2:30.162.1Christophe LemaireSosie2026 – five-year-old seasonMar 15ChukyoKinko ShoGII2,000m (Firm)14411.9 (7)1:59.11.0Kosei MiuraShake Your HeartAug 30NiigataNiigata KinenGIII2,000m (Good)11918.4 (7)5th1:59.90.3Kosei MiuraZoroastro
Legend:
Pedigree
Urban Chic is inbred 3x4 to Sunday Silence, meaning the horse's name appears in both the third and fourth generations of this pedigree. Urban Chic's granddam, Land's Edge, is the half-sister to , who sired Kitasan Black as well as Deep Impact. Urban Chic's great-granddam, Wind in Her Hair, won the Aral-Pokal in Germany, while her granddam, Highclere, won the Prix de Diane and the 1000 Guineas Stakes. Urban Chic also shares a mare line with Regaleira (Arima Kinen) and Stellenbosch (Oka Sho).
References