Japan

The reigning champion 2-year-old male in Japan, Do Deuce (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) will be out to avenge a pair of defeats this season in Sunday's middle jewel of the Japanese Triple Crown, the G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) over 2400 metres. Perfect in three starts last season, including a half-length success in the G1 Asahi Hai Futurity S. going the metric mile last December, Do Deuce just failed to reel in pace-pressing Ask Victor More (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in the 10-furlong Group 2 event named in honour of...

To mark The Queen's Platinum Jubilee, Leopardstown's King George V Cup has been reinstated and will be the feature race at the meeting of Thursday, June 2, which coincides the start of a four-day Jubilee bank holiday weekend in Britain.  The British Embassy in Ireland has worked in partnership with Leopardstown Racecourse, the British Irish Chamber of Commerce and Kmend to revive the race which was initially run in 1911 following the presentation of a specially commissioned trophy by King George V at Leopardstown during his visit to Ireland. The...

Progeny of the 1,000 Guineas winner Homecoming Queen (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}), Irish 1,000 Guineas scorer Jet Setting (Ire) (Fast Company {Ire}) and American Oaks heroine Spanish Queen (Tribal Rule) feature among the high-class offerings at the two-day Japan Racing Horse Association Select Sale on July 11 and 12.  Japanese-breds have starred on the international stage in recent times, highlighted by the success of Marche Lorraine (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}) and Loves Only You (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), both trained by Yoshito Yahagi, who made history by becoming the first...

Masatake Iida homebred Circle of Life (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}) was perfect in three starts last term to secure champion juvenile filly honours, but will be looking for her first victory as a 3-year-old in a well-matched renewal of the G1 Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks) Sunday at Tokyo Racecourse. Winner of the 1600-metre G3 Artemis S. at headquarters last October, the bay--whose sire has accounted for 2020 Oaks heroine Daring Tact (Jpn) and reigning Horse of the Year Efforia (Jpn)--came from worse than midfield to post a half-length success in the...

Juvenile filly champion Sodashi (Jpn) (Kurofune) punched her ticket to this fall's GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf with a victory in Sunday's G1 Victoria Mile at Tokyo Racecourse. The top three finishers in Sunday's race also earned automatic berths in the G1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp as well as the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois. Breaking alertly from stall 5, the fourth betting choice settled in along the inside in a close-up fourth before moving slightly outward for the stretch run. Emerging from the pack passing the...

A deep and diverse field of 18 distaff turf milers will take to the Fuchu course at Toyko Sunday afternoon for the G1 Victoria Mile, a race won in its last three renewals by the outstanding Normcore (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}, 2019), two-time Horse of the Year Almond Eye (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}, 2020) and treble champion Gran Alegria (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}, 2021). The Victoria Mile serves as a 'Win and You're In' event for the GI Breeders' Cup Mile at Keeneland this November. Several of Sunday's entrants are on...

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for Saturday running at Chukyo Racecourse. The weekend's highlight takes place at Tokyo, where recent Group 2 winner Jean Gros (More Than Ready) steps up in grade for the G1 NHK Mile Cup over the metric mile: Saturday, May 7, 2022 2nd-CKO, ¥9,900,000 ($76k), Maiden,...

Newsells Park Stud manager Julian Dollar has led the tributes to the multiple Group 1-producing Shastye (Ire) (Danehill), who has died at the age of 21 shortly after giving birth to a Dubawi (Ire) colt on Sunday. The dam of five individual black-type performers, including Group 1-winning brothers by Galileo (Ire), Japan (GB) and Mogul (GB), who are now stallions, the progeny of Shastye have been sensational on the track and in the sales ring. Described by Dollar as "one of the most inspirational and life-changing horses" he has ever...

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. We have one horse to focus on over the coming weekend at Hanshin Racecourse. The weekend's main event takes place Sunday at Tokyo with the running of the G1 Tenno Sho (Spring) over a metric two miles: Sunday, May 1, 2022 5th-HSN, ¥14,250,000 ($109k), Allowance, 3yo, 1400mT MOZU GOLD BARREL (f,...

Highly impressive in winning a pair of juvenile starts last season, Equinox (Jpn) (Kitasan Black {Jpn}) makes Sunday's G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) his 3-year-old debut, but must overcome the widest draw in the field of 18 if he is to stretch his unbeaten mark to three. Receiving the always important endorsement of Christophe Lemaire for his career debut in an 1800-metre newcomers' event at Niigata at the end of August, the Silk Racing colorbearer settled handy to the pace and stormed clear to graduate by six powerful lengths....

As has been well-documented, Japanese interests have--over the course of many years--accumulated some of the best bloodstock from all corners of the globe, and as evidenced in Riyadh and Dubai in the last couple of months, the Japanese are breeding horses that can compete anywhere at any level. Classics season in the island nation kicked off last weekend with the running of the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas), with the colts' equivalent--the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas)--set for this weekend at Nakayama Racecourse. The 3-year-old offspring of some...

Stars on Earth (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn) closed from off the pace to get her nose down in front of Water Navillera (Jpn) (Silver State) in Sunday's G1 Oka Sho at Hanshin, the first leg in the Japanese Triple Crown for fillies. The victory marked the first black-type score for the Shadai homebred. The filly settled in midpack as Kafuji Tetragon (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}) showed the way with Water Navillera in close pursuit. As the field constricted turning for home, Water Navillera gained control passing the furlong pole as Stars on...