What is the first hurdle in the short-distance champion 'Sprinter Series'? ... 'Raondeopaiter' wins the 17th Busan Ilbo Cup

The winner of this year's first short-distance racehorse competition, the Busan Ilbo Cup, has been decided.

'Raon the Fighter' (5 years old, male, trainer Park Jong-gon) proved to be the strongest existing horse by winning the 17th Busan Ilbo Cup (G3) held on the 2nd at Korea Racing Authority's LetsRun Park Busan-Gyeongnam.

The Busan Ilbo Cup is the first gateway of the 'Sprinter Series' that selects the best short-distance horse of the year. Raon the Fighter crossed the finish line first, beating strong contenders. The race record was 1 minute 11.3 seconds.

On the 2nd, the award ceremony for Raon the Fighter, the winning horse of the 17th Busan Ilbo Cup Grand Race, is taking place.

On that day, 14 short-distance powerhouses from Seoul and Busan participated, and Busan racehorses took 2nd, 3rd, and 4th places, raising the expectations of Busan fans for the 'Sprinter Series.'

Busan's 'Thonsal' and 'Yes Perfect,' who were not in the rankings in the early stages of the race, secured 3rd and 4th places after a fierce final battle, defending Busan's pride along with 'Beolma's Star,' who took 2nd place.

The defending champion and favorite, 'Eom-a Eom-a,' finished the race in 6th place, contrary to expectations.

The winning horse Raon the Fighter will receive its fourth major race trophy with this race. This was the first 1200m short-distance race in 10 months since the 'Seoul Owners Association President's Cup (G3)' in May last year. After winning the 2000m long-distance race 'KRA Cup Classic (G2)' in October last year, Raon the Fighter proved its ability by also winning the short-distance race 'Busan Ilbo Cup.'

Jockey Lim Ki-won, participating with Raon the Fighter for the second time, said, "Because we had worked together once earlier this year, communication with the trainer was smooth at the Busan Ilbo Cup," adding, "Raon the Fighter is a horse with excellent endurance and agility, and its condition on race day was good, so we were able to win."

The Sprinter Series starts with this Busan Ilbo Cup and continues with the 'SBS Sports Sprint' on May 14 and the 'Seoul Owners Association President's Cup' on June 18. The horse that achieves the highest cumulative points in these three 1200m races will receive a 100 million won incentive and be selected as the best short-distance horse of the year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.