Japan Cup Dirt
In late October 2008, the trainer and co-owner Mike LeCesse was contacted by Japanese racing officials about his horse racing in the Japan Cup Dirt (JPN-G1) with all expenses paid for Tin Cup Chalice to compete. The race, worth $USD 2.4 million, takes place on December 7 at Hanshin Racecourse. The Japan Cup Dirt is run clockwise around the oval (as many English races are run, and as American races once were run before the American Revolutionary War) so Tin Cup Chalice was tested, as a requirement of the Japan Racing Club, to determine his ability to adapt to running against his usual direction. That workout, held November 5, was successful and he was shipped to Japan...arriving after a 24 hour-flight from Rochester, New York on November 20, 2008.
At the Hanshin Racecourse on December 1, 2008 Tin Cup Chalice worked at 5 furlongs in 59.10 seconds. While Pedro Rodriguez has been the regular rider for Tin Cup Chalice, and was to travel to Japan, he encountered Visa/Passport issues and was not successful in obtaining a permit. Accordingly Edgar Prado, already in Japan for the World Super Jockey Series, picked up the mount and worked with the New York-bred in the days prior to the Japan Cup Dirt. Tin Cup Chalice took the lead for the first half of the Japan Cup Dirt, but gave way shortly after that. He came in 13th out of 16 horses in the Japan Cup Dirt race. He went off at odds of 9-to-1 making him the fourth-most-favored out of the 16.
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