Sprinters Stakes Preview: a 16-Horse Chase for Glory Over 1,200 Meters

The much-anticipated return of Japan Racing Association Grade 1 action takes place on Sunday, September 29, when the 58th running of the Sprinters Stakes will be held at Nakayama Racecourse in Chiba Prefecture. 

This race is one of just two top-level sprints on the JRA calendar. It is run over 1,200 meters on the outer turf track at Nakayama, which has a gentle first curve out of the backstretch before the much sharper turn for home.

First run back in 1967, it acquired Grade 2 status 20 years later in 1987. Finally, in 1990 it became a Grade 1 race. By 1994, runners from overseas were permitted to take part. It's a race for 3-year-olds and up, where the former carry 56 kg, and 4-year-olds and above carry 58 kg, with a 2 kg allowance for fillies and mares.

There are 18 nominations for Sunday, September 29's big race, with a field size of 16 being the maximum number. Two runners from Hong Kong, Victor The Winner and Mugen, will take two of the available berths as they bid to give Hong Kong its third win in the race. They hope to follow wins by Silent Witness in 2005, and Ultra Fantasy in 2010. Victor The Winner's big run in the Grade 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen in March 2024 gives a real sense of this becoming a reality.

Facts and Figures About the Sprinters Stakes

First favorites have won the Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes four times in the last 10 years. Gran Alegria was the last market leader to win in 2020. And the race does occasionally throw up a winner at a big price. 

Among the different age groups, 4-year-olds and 6-year-olds have come out on top in the past decade, with three wins apiece. The last 3-year-old winner of the race was Pixie Knight in 2021. Record time for the race was set by Lord Kanaloa in 2012, with a time of 1 minute, 6.7 seconds. 

For Sunday's race, the winner's check is ¥170 million JPY (nearly $1.2 million USD).

The Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes will be Race 11 on the Sunday card at Nakayama. Post time is 3:40 PM. 

Here's a look at some of the Japanese runners expected to play a major part in the race.

Satono Reve Brings Impressive Track Record to the Sprinters Stakes

Everything points to a big run for Lord Kanaloa progeny Satono Reve, and his six wins from seven races over 1,200 meters (two of them at Nakayama) add a lot more to the 5-year–old's profile. 

"He's remained in good shape, despite the hot weather, and his appetite and overall condition are good," trainer Noriyuki Hori recently commented. "In recent work, his breathing was good, and he put in a fast run. After that training, he weighed 551 kg."

Hori added, "His hooves are something to be careful about, so we make sure to pay attention to that, as well as his balance when running. All being well, jockey Damian Lane will get a short-term license and will take the ride." 

The Australian rider partnered with Satono Reve to win the Grade 3 Keeneland Cup at Sapporo in August, so things look good once again for a shot at a win at the highest level here.

Sprinters Stakes Spotlight: Mama Cocha Aims to Join List of Repeat Winners

Kurofune-sired Mama Cocha, winner of the 2023 Sprinters Stakes, will try to join an elite group of five horses to date who have won the Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes in consecutive years. The last one to do so was Red Falx in 2016 and 2017. 

Mama Cocha, a 5-year-old mare, finished a close second in her last race, the Grade 2 Sankei Sho Centaur Stakes at Chukyo on September 8. That was her first run since the spring. 

"It was decided to get her well forward in the race last time, with the wide draw she had," assistant trainer Yuki Iwasaki said. "She ran well, despite carrying 57 kg, getting a good position, and then keeping things up right to the finish. [And] she came out of the race well and things have been as expected with her." 

If successful here, Mama Cocha will give trainer Yasutoshi Ikee a hat trick of wins in the race, after Gendarme's win in 2022 and Mama Cocha's triumph last year.

Mad Cool Returns to Racing After a Long Break

The Irish-bred Mad Cool has had a nice long break since running in the Chairman's Sprint Prize in Hong Kong back on April 28, where he disappointed as one of the fancied runners that day. 

Two starts ago, though, he won the Grade 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen at Chukyo. And now he is trying to become just the sixth horse in history to win that race and the Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes in the same year. 

Trainer Manabu Ikezoe gave his thoughts on the horse: "He returned to the stable at the end of August, so we've had plenty of time to get him ready. He's been training well, and we'll have the race jockey ride him a while before the race."

Ikezoe continued: "As he's a big horse, his footwork isn't always the best. The race has plenty of good horses in it this year, but hopefully, he'll run as well as he did last year."

Read the rest of this article about the Sprinters Stakes and the Japanese horses in contention on JRA News.

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Author: JRA News