Tenno Sho (Spring) (G1) - Preview

Croix Du Nord

Redentor

Admire Terra

Stinger Glass

Aqua Vernal

Tagano Dude

Shin Emperor

Hohelied

Following the Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) at Nakayama , the top-level action moves to Kyoto Racecourse for the Tenno Sho (Spring) on Sunday, May 3. Along with the Tenno Sho (Autumn) run over 2,000 meters at Tokyo, the Tenno Sho, which translates to “Emperor’s Prize,” is one of Japan’s most esteemed races.

First held in 1938, the Tenno Sho (Spring) is a long-runner historically as well as by distance. It is the longest of Japan’s Grade 1 events at 3,200 meters and requires over 3 minutes to complete over the right-handed track. Known by its current name since 1948, the Tenno Sho has, with the exception of 1945 and 1946, been run every year, and the spring version has maintained its distance of 3,200 meters from 1939.

This year, 16 horses, aged from 4 to 9, have been nominated for the Tenno Sho's 18 berths, and will compete for a first-place prize of JPY300 million or a lesser share of the total purse of JPY651 million . Thirteen male runners, including two geldings, will carry 58 kg. The field’s three mares will be saddled with 56 kg.

This year, three-time Grade 1 champion Croix Du Nord is expected to be neck and neck with Admire Terra as race favorite, with Redentor close behind in the Top 3 pick . After that, it’s a tough call, with another handful of names being bantered about by racing enthusiasts hoping to dial in on the top finishers.

Races often seen as top indicators of success in the Tenno Sho (Spring) are the Stayers Stakes (G2, Nakayama, 3,600 meters, Dec. 6), the Diamond Stakes (G3, Tokyo, 3,400 meters, Feb. 21), the Hanshin Daishoten (G2, Hanshin, 3,000 meters, March 22) and the Nikkei Sho (G2, Nakayama, 2,500 meters, March 28). Horses participating on Sunday from the Top 3 finishers of these races are Meiner Campana, Hohelied, Stinger Glass, Admire Terra and Aqua Vernal.

The Kyoto 3,200 meters is run clockwise on turf and circles one-and-a-half times around. The start is from halfway down the backstretch and soon after, the track rises sharply, climbing nearly four meters in little more than 100 meters around the first turn before sloping down and around into the homestretch. The field passes the grandstand, continues around and, once again turning out of the backstretch, this point is where many make their move. Once into the stretch, which unlike Tokyo, Nakayama and Hanshin, the track is flat and favors those with late speed. Remaining is about 400 meters to the finish line.

The Tenno Sho (Spring) is held only four days into the meet and the going tends to be fast. Horses racing close to the pace are often favored and, naturally, horses with stamina are at an advantage, as are those with a sharp turn of foot and speed.

Over the past 10 runnings at Kyoto (the race was held at Hanshin in 2021 and 2022), the far inside gate has shown itself advantageous, as has the No. 4 gate. The race favorite has won five times and finished second three times.

The standing race record was set by Kitasan Black in 2017 at 3 minutes, 12.5 seconds.

The Tenno Sho (Spring) is the 11th race on the Sunday Kyoto card of 12. Post time is 15 :40 locally .

Here’s a look at some of the runners expected to play a part in the race:

Croix du Nord: One of the two 4-year-old colts in the lineup, Croix du Nord has had a stellar career thus far, with six wins from nine starts, including three Grade 1 victories and recognition by the Japan Racing Association as the Best Two-Year-Old Colt of 2024 after he scooped the Grade 1 Hopeful Stakes at yearend. Runner-up in the Satsuki Sho, his other top victories are the 2025 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) and his most recent win, the Grade 1 Osaka Hai, where he prevailed despite a wide draw and a trip up the outside. Prior to that, Croix du Nord had also pocketed a Group 3 in France before suffering his first major defeat in the Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. Two months later, he finished fourth in the Grade 1 Japan Cup, with a not-too-shabby time only 0.6 seconds behind winner Calandagan and Croix du Nord’s peer and rival, the Japan Cup runnerup Masquerade Ball. Having passed on the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger) last year to go abroad, Croix du Nord’s longest distance thus far has been 2,400 meters. However, if he’s anything like his sire, Kitasan Black (winner of the spring Tenno Sho in 2016 and 2017 and five other G1s), he’ll be able to take the extra distance in stride. If the striking black colt can capture the Tenno Sho (Spring), he’ll become the ninth Derby winner to do so, the first in 19 years. He would also become the first winner in 13 years that has had no previous experience over distances of 3,000 meters and up.

Redentor: With six wins from 10 starts, this 5-year-old son of Rulership passed on the first two 3-year-old classics, but took on the final Triple Crown contest, the Kikuka Sho, and finished second. From there, he showed that his prowess as a stayer was no fluke when he aced the Grade 3 Diamond Stakes over 3,400 meters, followed by a win of last year’s Tenno Sho (Spring). Returning in mid-February after a fracture, he was prepped with the Grade 2 Kyoto Kinen over 2,200 meters and finished eighth, likely due to not only coming off a nine -month spell, but also his often-seen late breaks, coupled with the shorter distance. This year will also likely see a change in riders for this race. Damian Lane rode Redentor to victory last year, but Christophe Lemaire is expected up this time. Lemaire has ridden six of Redentor’s races thus far, and has notched four wins, one second. Lemaire already has secured three wins of the Tenno Sho (Spring) and six wins of the autumn version. If he can win this Sunday, he will become the third jockey (only the second, along with Yutaka Take, among current riders) to win a combined total of 10 wins of the autumn and spring Tenno Sho.

Admire Terra: Third in the 2024 Kikuka Sho only a nose behind Redentor, 5-year-old Admire Terra’s next big event saw him finish in 11th place in last year’s Grade 1 Arima Kinen (The Grand Prix). First out this year saw a promising effort in the Grade 2 Hanshin Daishoten in late February, when Admire Terra topped the field of 10 (and runner-up Aqua Vernal) by three lengths over 3,000 meters. Displaying a great amount of growth, he also rewrote the course record time to 3 minutes, 2 seconds flat. It should be noted that, over the past decade, all horses coming off a win of the Hanshin Daishoten have figured in the Top 4 finishers of the Tenno Sho (Spring), three have won. Expected in the saddle is Yutaka Take, who has ridden to victory three out of the four times he has been paired with Admire Terra. The 57-year-old Take, with eight wins of this race, also holds the record for most wins.

Stinger Glass: The highly consistent Stinger Glass has figured out of the Top 2 finishers only three times from 11 starts. Seven those starts have been over 2,500 meters and up and he has won them all. A 5-year-old son of Kizuna, Stinger Glass returned to the track in late February after three months and aced his first race longer than 2,600 meters, the Grade 3 Diamond Stakes over 3,400 meters at Tokyo. In that race , he was also carrying the field’s top weight of 57.5 kg, which is also the most he has carried to date. “In the Diamond Stakes, which was his first race after moving stables, he did a great job of drawing on his stamina to its utmost”, trainer Yasuo Tomomichi said. “He’s a very positive horse and he’s eager to run in morning work, but his stamina makes him especially well-suited to long distances. He’s a type I’ve never had in my barn before and I’m eager to see how he’ll do in his first G1. ”

Aqua Vernal: This Epiphaneia mare finished second three lengths behind winner Admire Terra in her first graded stakes bid and most recent start, the Hanshin Daishoten . Highly consistent with 11 finishes in the Top 2 from her 17 starts thus far, the 5-year-old has scored a win and three seconds from her four starts since November, three of those over 3,000 meters, two of them at Kyoto. And her tally at the venue is spot on, with two wins and three seconds from five starts. Former jockey Hirofumi Shii eyes his first G1 win as trainer since opening his barn in 2021. “The best thing is that there are no worries about her settling,” said Shii. “She’s eating well and her condition is excellent.”

Tagano Dude: Tagano Dude impressed last out in the Osaka Hai with a late spurt from the rear that closed the gap to a neck on the top trio of G1 champs. His time over the final three furlongs was top of the field at 34.8 seconds. A G3 winner, it was his best result from his two career G1 runs and his first top-level event in over two years. Though he only has notched seven finishes in the Top 2 from his 27 career starts, the 5-year-old son of Yamakatsu Ace has been turning heads in morning work. His final three -furlong times have topped the field in all three starts this year, and though he has yet to race over anything longer than 2,400 meters, hopes are high he could make the Top 3 if late speed is key. Trainer Toru Miya has modest hopes for his third G1 win. “To be honest, I think 3,200 meters is long for him, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he handled it well. He has gotten stronger and is able to relax much more than before.”

Others to note:

Returning from a fourth-place finish in G1 competition at Riyadh, the plans for Shin Emperor to fly to the U.S. were suddenly called off last week and the 5-year-old was switched here. Following his tie for second in the 2024 Japan Cup, he’s had only two starts in Japan from six starts in the past year, and it’ll be his first test over 3,000 meters. However , from his 15 career outings, he has made the Top 3 in more than half of, four of those in G1 company.
Prepped with the 3,400-meter Grade 3 Diamond Stakes at the end of February, Hohelied’s rider dropped his stirrup in the final stage, but the 5-year-old mare still managed to make the board. Before that, she became the first female in 39 years to win the Grade 2 Stayers Stakes at yearend over 3,600 meters at Nakayama . She has finished in the Top 5 in all but one of her last five starts. She i s not to be overlooked.