It’s that time of year once again for one of the great horse races in Japan, the Group 1 Japanese Derby — or Tokyo Yushun to give its Japanese name — which will be held on May 26 at Fuchu Racecourse, just a short distance from the center of Tokyo.
This will be the 91st edition of the Derby, which was first run in 1932. Except for its first two years, when it was held at the former Meguro Racecourse, its home has always been the Tokyo track, which has become one of the most iconic racecourses in the world. Other famous races held at the Tokyo track include the Japanese Oaks, the Yasuda Kinen and, arguably the best on the Japan Racing Association’s yearly calendar, the Japan Cup.
To spend a day at Fuchu Racecourse on a big day is certainly something everyone should experience once, even if they’re not a fan of the sport. The grandstands are packed to the rafters and the atmosphere is electric.
For those who aren’t ardent racegoers, the area behind the stands, with its rose garden and racing museum, could be the spot. Or even just to stroll around the whole area, taking everything in, would provide an interesting picture of the many different aspects of Japanese life on display at the racecourse. A word of warning for this year’s Derby Day is that reservations are required and must be made on the JRA website, be it general admission or reserved seating, as it won’t be possible to show up on the day without them. This year’s attendance will be capped at 80,000.
The Japanese Derby is the second leg of the Triple Crown series of races for colts, with the Satsuki Sho in April being the first and the Kikuka Sho in the autumn being the last. Since 1932, there have been just eight Triple Crown winners in Japan, with the immortal St. Lite being the first in 1941 and Contrail the most recent in 2020, putting an end to an eight-year dry spell.
It’s at this time when the drumroll begins, as the latest 3-year-old colt with a chance of becoming a Triple Crown winner steps into the limelight. Last year it was Sol Oriens, who arrived at the Derby with great expectations only to finish second. This year, the star act is expected to be Justin Milano, a colt by Kizuna, who won the Derby back in 2013.
Bloodlines often mean a lot when it comes to producing big-race winners, but as always with racing, nothing is guaranteed.
Justin Milano won the Satsuki Sho at Nakayama Racecourse in April, and another feather in his cap that day was the fact that he did it in record time. His trainer, Yasuo Tomomichi, is already a three-time Derby winner, having last won with Do Deuce, another record breaker, in 2022 when he reset the best time for the race at 2:21.9. Justin Milano will become just the eighth horse in JRA history to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown unbeaten if he manages to win on Sunday.
Just before the Satsuki Sho, Tomomichi expressed confidence in the latest star to grace his stable.
“He’s a big striding horse, and with the talent he has, we can look forward to the Derby with him,” he said.
With Justin Milano reportedly finishing the race with no problems, his jockey for the Derby is expected to be Keita Tosaki, who guided him to victory in the Satsuki Sho and has made giant leaps toward the top of the JRA jockeys’ table since starting his career on the National Association of Racing, or local government circuit. After securing the first leg of the Triple Crown, Tosaki had nothing but praise for the impressive colt.
“He’s a smart horse with a lot of potential,” he said. “He’s easy to ride, and I think he can handle a longer distance.”
It’s very easy to get carried away when the focus is on just one horse in a big race, but Sunday will most likely see another 17 horses in the line-up for the Derby.
Another interesting contender will be a filly named Regaleira, whose connections seem to want her to take on the colts, as opposed to other fillies. It’s a rather unorthodox move as only three fillies have won the Derby, with the last one to do so being Vodka back in 2007. The last filly to run in the race was Satono Reinas, who managed a fifth-place finish in 2021.
Other runners to look out for are Meisho Tabaru and Cosmo Kuranda. The first is a frontrunner, and they’re always exciting to watch for sustaining runs at the front of the field, should Meisho Tabaru’s jockey decide that is the tactic to use on the day.
Cosmo Kuranda finished second to Justin Milano in the Satsuki Sho and this time will be ridden by Italian jockey Mirco Demuro, who’s been riding in Japan since 1999 and was the first foreign jockey ever to win the Japanese Derby back in 2003, on Neo Universe.
Which horse has what it takes to pull off the big win in the famous race? All will be revealed on Sunday, when the horses will jump from the starting gates at 3:40 p.m. in front of the grandstand and gallop for 2,400 meters, or just over a circuit, on the turf track at Fuchu Racecourse.
This year’s purse is a staggering ¥300 million (around $200 million), a far cry from the winner’s purse of just ¥10,000 back in the early days of the race.
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