Recap: Calandagan Sets World Record in Legendary Japan Cup

European Horse of the Year Calandagan (FRA) and race favorite Masquerade Ball were set for a finish down to the wire until Calandagan pulled ahead at the last moment to secure a legendary win in a world record time of 2:20.03 in the G1 Japan Cup.  

The first shock of the race occurred immediately, as 10th-favorite Admire Terra dropped jockey Yuga Kawada. He then stayed on the outside for most of the race, gradually overtaking the field. Seiun Hades broke away from the pack early on and had a lead of 8 lengths entering the third corner, but the strategy failed as he faded on the homestretch and finished 12th.

Exiting the fourth corner, Masquerade Ball, 3rd-favorite Danon Decile, and 4th-favorite Calandagan were three-wide in the mid-pack, with Shin Emperor and the fading Sunrise Earth in front of them. The runaway Admire Terra continued to accelerate and ended up in front with 400m to go, with 2nd-favorite Croix du Nord as the actual leader with 300m remaining.

As Croix du Nord took the lead, Masquerade Ball, Danon Decile, and Calandagan each simultaneously made their move on Tokyo's famous long straightaway. With 200m left, Masquerade Ball and Calandagan passed Croix du Nord, with Danon Decile blocked behind them.

Masquerade Ball and Calandagan were nose to nose approaching the post, with runaway Admire Terra completing a picturesque three-wide finish. At the very last second, Calandagan pulled in front by a head to win the Japan Cup. Both horses broke Almond Eye's 2400m turf world record of 2:20.06 set by Almond Eye's 2018 Japan Cup performance. Shortly after they crossed the line, their jockeys Mickael Barzalona and Christophe Lemaire shook hands in a well-deserved show of respect. 

Danon Decile rounded out the podium two and a half lengths behind them, while Croix du Nord beat out Justin Palace by a neck for 4th place. 

After the race, Masquerade Ball and Danon Decile collided, which caused by Christophe Lemaire and Keita Tosaki to fall. I hope that each were unharmed, and that if they were, that they make swift and complete recoveries.

Calandagan's win ends a 20-year drought of foreign victories in the Japan Cup. Alkaased (ENG) was the previous foreign champion, having won the race in 2005. Calandagan has now won four straight G1 races in a row after coming second in four consecutive G1s before that, and is clearly the best racehorse in the world for 2025. While Calandagan's 2026 rotation is unconfirmed amid rumors of entering the Breeders' Cup Turf, I hope that he returns to defend his hard-won title in next year's Japan Cup.

Earlier this month, the JRA announced a new prize money incentive system for 2026 that means the Japan Cup may become the second-richest turf race in the world for foreign horses that win select international races and then win the Japan Cup. Under the system, Calandagan himself would've been eligible for the bonus prize. With a new foreign champion and increased bonus prize money, perhaps the Japan Cup will become an attractive race for the world's best horses once again.

This is my new personal favorite horse race, and I grinned ear-to-ear as I wrote this article. From the immediate shock of Admire Terra dropping Yuga Kawada all the way to Calandagan pulling away at the last moment, I never knew what was going to happen next in this race. If you haven't already, I strongly encourage you to watch the race yourself. It's too soon to say how highly this will rate among Japan's greatest-ever races, but I'm certain it will one day be considered legendary.

Preview: 2025 Japan Cup

One of Japan's richest and most prestigious races is tonight, as the Japan Cup will be contested at Tokyo Racecourse over 2,400 meters. Seventeen horses will contest this year's edition, after 2023 Kikuka Sho winner Durezza was scratched. 

This year's favorite is Masquerade Ball, coming off of an autumn Tenno Sho win that gave him the honors of being just the sixth three-year-old to win the race. He's drawn the 15th post for this race, which is unlucky because of the race's slight favor towards inside posts. Christophe Lemaire returns as his jockey, who would likely cement himself as this year's top jockey by earnings with a win. It would be Lemaire's 9th time in the past 10 years with the distinction. 

Masquerade Ball will face off against familiar rival and this year's Derby winner Croix du Nord, coming off a disappointing 14th-place finish at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Yuichi Kitamura returns as jockey, having won the Kyoto Nisai Stakes with longshot Justin Vista the day before. Croix du Nord hasn't raced in Japan in five months, but I doubt he'll be rusty. At post 2, he'll be in good position to take advantage of the short straight before the first corner. He's finished ahead of Masquerade Ball three times before, but with an even stronger lineup today, can he do so again?

Last year's Derby winner Danon Decile makes his first Japan Cup appearance today, and just his second start of the year in Japan after winning the American Jockey Club Cup in January. His April excursion to the UAE was a tremendous success as he captured the Dubai Sheema Classic, but a second foreign trip to the UK ended in failure as he finished 5th out of 6 in the International Stakes. Keita Tosaki has been his jockey this year, replacing Norihiro Yokoyama. Having won the Queen Elizabeth II Cup with Regaleira just two weeks ago, can Tosaki lead Danon Decile to another victory at Tokyo?

European Horse of the Year Calandagan is the sole foreign challenger this year, looking to become the first foreign horse to win the Japan Cup since  the time of writing, Calandagan's odds are 6.8, having been at 8.0 entering the weekend and above 10.0 a week ago. I have to wonder why a horse on a streak of three G1 wins in a row, with four G1 runner-ups before that, has found himself as the fourth-favorite of the race. 

Justin Palace hasn't tasted victory since the 2023 spring Tenno Sho, but has been a consistent contender by finishing at least 6th in each of his past 7 starts. Cristian Demuro will also be Justin Palace's 5th jockey in his last 6 starts, but Demuro was in charge for last year's Japan Cup when Justin Palace came 5th. His recent loss to Masquerade Ball may be fresh on his fans' mind, but his connections still hold faith that he'll be able to claim his first victory at Tokyo.

My pick: I expect Calandagan to break the drought of foreign wins. Even though each of Japan's main contenders are proven winners at Tokyo's 2400m course, I don't think the home-field advantage will have as much of an impact as many others do. The Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud should have prepared Calandagan for every one of the challenges Tokyo Racecourse will give him.

Recap: Justin Vista's Outside Surge Leads Unlikely Trio in Kyoto Nisai Stakes

Though he was the 9th-favorite out of 11 with odds of 25.0 entering Saturday's G3 Radio Nikkei Hai Kyoto Nisai Stakes, Justin Vista led a rapidly-accelerating trio including 10th-favorite Ask Edinburgh and 3rd-favorite Going to Sky on the outside to claim a longshot victory by one length.

4th-favorite Nettaiya Rai set the pace for most of the race and gave a good challenge from the rail, but couldn't keep up with the podium finishers, who all charged in from the outside on the final straight. 7th-favorite Meisho Solaris and 3rd-favorite Rock Ptarmigan kept the pace behind Nettaiya Rai, but they both faded quickly on the final straight.

Going to Sky made his move on the fourth and final corner to claim a brief lead entering the final 200m, but was caught by Justin Vista and Ask Edinburgh shortly before the finish. It was a frustrating afternoon for heavy favorite Valsecito (odds of 2.2), who sat towards the back of the pack for most of the race and finished 7th. Valsecito was momentarily last exiting the final corner, and couldn't begin the spurt he needed due to a good challenge by 8th-favorite closer Flieger and a magnificent mark by Justin Vista's jockey, Yuichi Kitamura. 

Justin Vista's sire Saturnalia now has four graded stakes winners among his progeny, following Shohei ('25 Kyoto Shimbun Hai), Fandom ('25 Mainichi Hai), and Festival Hill ('25 Fantasy Stakes). Though still relatively early into his stud career, this year's success seems to justify his ¥10,000,000 stud fee.

Justin Vista was the fifth-favorite in his debut race last month, also at Kyoto Racecourse, and defied the odds again. His dam Pebble Garden (dms. Deep Impact) was winless in four starts, but Justin Palace managed to show a glimpse of his great damsire's might today.  

Jockey Yuichi Kitamura claims his 992nd career win with Justin Palace, after also winning the 7th race at Kyoto with G T Man, and is clearly poised to earn his 1,000th win soon. Tomorrow he'll challenge the Japan Cup with third-favorite Croix du Nord, and the reigning Derby champion jockey has surely proven that he's at the top of his game with today's upset victory.

It's the second graded stakes win of the year for Masahiro Miki, following Erika Express's victory in January's Fairy Stakes and runner-up finish at the Shuka Sho. Given Justin Vista's early accomplishments at Kyoto Racecourse, including one of the longest graded races for two-year-olds, perhaps he has the potential to claim Miki a second spring Tenno Sho by following in the footsteps of fellow Deep Impact descendant Justin Palace?

The Beginning of Citrus Keiba

 

Welcome to my blog about Japanese horse racing, meaning “keiba” in Japanese. 

I’m Zach Stein, and thank you very much for checking out my blog. 

Most of Citrus Keiba’s posts will assume that the reader has a basic level of 

knowledge regarding keiba. To clarify, I will seldom explain jargon such as “lengths”

and assume that the reader understands the general structure of the JRA and NAR.

For those who are new to keiba, I will post introductory articles in the next two weeks. 

The weekend of November 29-30th will be the first weekend of coverage, with the 

Japan Cup as the first G1 covered by Citrus Keiba. G1, JG1, and Jpn1 races will 

always receive pre-race previews and post-race recaps posted within two hours of 

the finish. G2 and G3 races may or may not receive post-race recaps, but recaps will 

be posted within twelve hours of the finish. Odds of G2 and G3 races receiving extra

coverage will increase if there is not a G1 race that weekend. Other races, including

Listed, Open, maiden, debut, JG2, JG3, Jpn2, Jpn3, and other conditional races will 

usually not be covered.

 

In addition to pre- and post-race preview and recap articles, other content that may

be posted include personal opinion pieces, guides, English-language interviews, 

and Umamusume-related content such as which horses I think should be adapted 

into Umamusume.

 

I sincerely enjoy horse racing, particularly keiba, and I hope to spread awareness 

and enjoyment of keiba in the Anglophone world with my blog.