Sprinters Stakes (G1) - Preview

Star Anise

Panja Tower

Win Carnelian

Flicker Jab

Mama Cocha

Lugal

Sound Moryana

Red Mon Reve

World’s End

The early autumn JRA Grade 1 races kick off next Sunday (September 27), when the Sprinters Stakes (one of just two JRA top-level sprints) will be run at Nakayama Racecourse over 1,200 meters on the turf course there. While there has been plenty of action throughout the summer to keep racing fans happy, it’s the Grade 1 races that always attract the most attention, particularly once the ball gets rolling again.

The Sprinters Stakes was first run in 1967, so this year will mark the 60th running of the race. It was gradually elevated in status to become a Grade 2 race by 1987, and made it to Grade 1 level in 1990. Four years later, it became one of the first JRA races to open up to runners from overseas, and since then, a number of foreign horses have targeted the race. Silent Witness (2005) and Ultra Fantasy (2010) both won for Hong Kong, while Takeover Target was a popular winner for Australia in 2006.

The Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes is for 3-year-olds and up, with the youngest horses allocated 56kg, while 4-year-olds and above carry 58kg, with a 2kg allowance for fillies and mares. Last year Win Carnelian, an 8-year-old, sprang a 50/1 shock, getting within 0.2 seconds of Lord Kanaloa’s record time of 1 minute, 6.7 seconds, set in 2012. There have been a number of surprises in recent years. The last first favorite to win was Gran Alegria back in 2020, while the most recent 3-year-old winner was Pixie Knight in 2021. The last seven years have seen the race run on good to firm ground. This year’s winner’s check is JPY170 million (in the region of USD1 million).

A couple of sprint races leading up to this Sunday’s big race have been the Grade 3 Keeneland Cup, run over 1,200 meters at Sapporo in August, and the Grade 2 Sankei Sho Centaur Stakes, run over 1,200 meters at Hanshin earlier this month.

There are 21 nominations for the Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes, which will have a maximum of 16 runners, and it was to be hoped that Hong Kong’s Fast Network, a 6-year-old New Zealand-bred gelding, would get to run in the race, but after his disappointing run in the Grade 2 Sankei Sho Centaur Stakes recently, he now misses the race due to a throat ailment and will return to Hong Kong. He would have been the 18th runner from Hong Kong to have a crack at the race, but it now becomes an all-Japanese affair.

Sunday’s race will be Race 11 on the 12-race card at Nakayama, with a post time in Japan of 15:40. Final declarations and the barrier draw will be available later in the week.
Here’s a look at some of the runners expected to take on the race:

Star Anise: One of a number of slightly surprising entries, this year’s Grade 1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) winner will take on a sprinter’s role here, but she did win her maiden race over 1,200 meters as a 2-year-old. Recent comments from trainer Tomokazu Takano were: “She’s been fine over the summer, and returned to the stable on September 4, looking very well. She’s put on muscle where she needed to. In her first piece of work on the uphill, everything seemed to look good with her.” Together with her carrying a light weight of 54kg on Sunday, she’ll have the assistance of jockey Christophe Lemaire to give her every chance of another top-level win over this shorter distance.

Panja Tower: The 4-year-old colt is versatile when it comes to distance, and most recently ran a good second in the Grade 3 Keeneland Cup over 1,200 meters at Sapporo in August. Trainer Shinsuke Hashiguchi said: “Even though he couldn’t quite catch the winner last time, he was persistent to the line and finished ahead of Win Carnelian. He ran a strong race, and afterwards returned to the stable at Ritto. In recent training, he clocked 57.2 seconds over four furlongs on the uphill course, without overdoing things.” Panja Tower will be ridden by Kohei Matsuyama, and it will be the horse’s first time to race at Nakayama.

Win Carnelian: Age is just a number for the now 9-year-old, and he’s looking to go back-to-back in the race he won last year, to become just the fourth horse since 1990 to achieve that feat. Red Falx was the last one to do so, winning in 2016 and 2017. Trainer Yuichi Shikato commented: “He’s been at the stable, and his training has included some stints in the pool. His condition has come on a lot. He’s been moving well, even though his times have been just a little slow due to the condition of the training track.” Jockey Kosei Miura scored his first Grade 1 with Win Carnelian last year, and with no big race win since, is now looking to double his tally on the same horse this year.

Flicker Jab: The 4-year-old colt by Saturnalia has really become a force to be reckoned with in the sprinting ranks, and has now won three races in a row, including his latest, the Grade 2 Sankei Sho Centaur Stakes, where he handled the rise at Hanshin better than the others at the finish. He’s looking to become the first horse to win both the Centaur Stakes and the Sprinters Stakes in the same year since Tower of London in 2019. “In the Centaur Stakes, he got off to his usual good start, and ran as I expected,” trainer Shota Nishizono said. “The draw also helped and he ran a strong race. He’s come out of the race well and is nice and relaxed.” Jockey bookings look to be an interesting aspect of the race, and Atsuya Nishimura will ride Flicker Jab for the first time.

Mama Cocha: Winner of the race in 2023, and good results the following two years, Mama Cocha remains competitive at the age of seven. She most recently ran third in the Grade 2 Sankei Sho Centaur Stakes, arguably the best of the trial races for the Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes. Assistant trainer Hiroshi Kanetake said: “She was previously put off by a horse misbehaving in the next barrier, but it’s something we can’t worry about. Last time she drew an inside gate and got a nice ground-saving run. Being the first weekend of the meeting, the horses in front weren’t stopping, but she put in a good performance.” Mama Cocha is trained by Yasutoshi Ikee (who also won the race in 2022 with Gendarme) and will be ridden by Yutaka Take.

Lugal: The 6-year-old by Duramente is another past winner of the race (2024), and has been running well this year, be it in Japan or overseas. Despite finishing eighth at England’s Royal Ascot meeting most recently, he was just 0.4 seconds off the winner, and he finished second in Dubai two starts ago. Trainer Haruki Sugiyama is pleased with the way things have been going for the horse. “He’s reacted well to his races abroad,” the trainer said. “It was a fast race last time, but he showed how tough he can be, especially considering the weight he had to carry. In his recent work, I wasn’t worried about his time due to the condition of the track.”

Sound Moryana: Since switching to turf in 2025, the 4-year-old filly has been posting some good results, culminating in her win in the Grade 3 Keeneland Cup at Sapporo last time, when she beat home Panja Tower and Win Carnelian. Trainer Hidenori Take said: “I could evaluate her highly last time when she beat Grade 1 winning horses, and a lot of it was down to the jockey. Things have been as usual since she returned to the stable at Ritto, and in a recent piece of work on the uphill, she posted a time of 56.6 seconds over four furlongs.” The filly by Mikki Isle gets to claim a 2kg allowance in this next race.

A couple of others to note are Red Mon Reve and World’s End. Red Mon Reve gave himself no chance after blowing the start in the Grade 2 Sankei Sho Centaur Stakes last time, but it must be remembered that he finished second to Satono Reve in the Grade 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen in March. World’s End is tackling 1,200 meters for the first time, but it should be noted that he’s led in his last two races, the latest being the Grade 1 Yasuda Kinen over 1,600 meters, when he finished second.

Sources: Keiba Book