DANON Decile gave Japan a third Dubai Sheema Classic victory in four years after taking the Group 1 contest in fine style at Meydan last weekend.

Charlie Appleby’s defending champion Rebel’s Romance was aiming to become the first horse to win Meydan’s premier mile-and-a-half race on two occasions and the seven-year-old took the initiative early on.

The son of Dubawi injected further pace with three furlongs to go to make it a stamina test for his rivals, but it was one which Shogo Yasuda’s charge passed with flying colours.

Danon Decile made his move with 300 metres remaining and extinguished Rebel’s Romance’s lead inside the final furlong.

Favourite Calandagan finished swiftly, but he was left with too much to do as he settled for a length-and-a-quarter second, with Durezza third and Rebel’s Romance fourth.

Danon Decile was a 50/1 shot when he won the Japan Derby last May, but he proved that was no flash in the pan when finishing third in the Arima Kinen last December.

Winning trainer Yasuda said: “He seems better going left-handed.

“Before the race, he was a little bit nervous and looking around at the other horses but once the race started, he was concentrating.”

Tosaki said: “My horse was a little bit nervous but travelled really well in the race.”

British targets

Francis-Henri Graffard, trainer of Calandagan, admitted the French raider was beaten “fair and square” and on Monday he indicated that his stable star would run next in the Coronation Cup at Epsom, followed by another crack at the Juddmonte International, in which he was runner-up to City Of Troy at York last August.

“He’s a horse that needs time to get into his rhythm and Mickael (Barzalona) said he was happy tracking the winner into the straight,” Graffard said.

“He had the first kick and when we kicked, we finished the race off strongly. Mickael will know him better in the future.”