American Pharoah colts among Japan’s exciting 2025 Triple Crown nominees

Feb 06, 2025 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Natural Rise holds off Clay King in the Cattleya S. at Tokyo

Natural Rise holds off Clay King in the Cattleya S. at Tokyo (Photo by Horsephotos.com)

After Japan’s Forever Young just missed in a three-way photo in the 2024 Kentucky Derby (G1), his compatriots have expressed an unprecedented degree of interest in the 2025 Triple Crown. Sixty-nine Japanese-trained three-year-olds are nominated to the Derby, Preakness (G1), and Belmont (G1) – that’s about 18.5% of the total number of 373 nominees!

Only four have scored points on the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby so far – Natural Rise, the Cattleya S. winner who was fourth in the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun; Happy Man, the runner-up in the Zen-Nippon; and the respective second and third from the Cattleya, Clay King and T O Elvis.

Several of the most exciting prospects might shake up the leaderboard in the two remaining races, the Feb. 23 Hyacinth S. and the March 29 Fukuryu S. Or some could opt for the Mideast route taken by Forever Young, who tuned up in the Saudi Derby (G3) before earning his Kentucky Derby spot in the UAE Derby (G2).

Triple Crown star American Pharoah has four recent winners in Japan worth watching, including the well-related Luxor Cafe and Taisei Dorado.

Luxor Cafe is a full brother to Japanese champion dirt horse Cafe Pharoah, who captured the 2020 Hyacinth and back-to-back editions of the February (G1). Trained by Noriyuki Hori like his famous brother, Luxor Cafe prevailed in a duel to break his maiden in 1:35.8, juvenile-record time for the metric mile at Tokyo. He followed up by romping in an about 1 1/8-mile Nakayama allowance.

Taisei Dorado crushed a newcomers’ race at Kyoto, where he drew off in front-running fashion as the 9-10 favorite. The Haruki Sugiyama trainee is out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Miss Besilu, the third-placer in the 2014 Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) and Alabama (G1). Miss Besilu is a half-sister to Horse of the Year Saint Liam, from the immediate family of Hall of Famer Gun Runner.

Lake Stripes, a son of American Pharoah and Argentine Group 1 vixen Infartame, also won at first asking. The Masahiro Otake pupil exceeded expectations as a 9.80-1 shot in the Tokyo newcomers’ event.

Trainer Daisuke Takayanagi, whose T O Password finished a solid fifth in last year’s Derby, has six nominees. Aside from the aforementioned T O Elvis, he conditions the American Pharoah colt Danon Vestal, a maiden winner at Kyoto in his third try.

Forever Young’s trainer, Yoshito Yahagi, likewise made six sophomores eligible for the Triple Crown. Arguably his two most interesting hopefuls are turf performers yet to try dirt. Both Tjuta and King Squall are by the late champion and top sire Duramente and out of mares with U.S. dirt connections.

Tjuta, the sales topper as a foal at the 2022 Japan Racing Horse Association Select Sale, sports a 2-for-3 mark. Fourth to Japanese champion two-year-old Croix du Nord in the grassy Hopeful (G1), he rebounded in the Wakagoma S. in his latest.

Tjuta’s mother, Champagne Anyone, is by 2007 Kentucky Derby champion Street Sense. Champagne Anyone scored her signature win in the 2019 Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2) and placed fourth in the Kentucky Oaks (G1).

King Squall, a sharp winner at Sapporo in his lone start last July, is out of a daughter of all-time European great Frankel. But she is in turn a half-sister to 2005 Wood Memorial (G1) conqueror Bellamy Road, seventh as the Kentucky Derby favorite.

The Eiji Nakadate-trained Clay King is one of several promising nominees from the first crop of unbeaten 2020 Arkansas Derby (G1) hero Nadal. The well-named colt was a hard-charging runner-up in the Cattleya, and he improved on the stretch-out to about 1 1/8 miles to dominate a Nakayama allowance. Another Cattleya alum, ninth-placer Dragon Welds (by Frosted), bounced back in a Chukyo allowance for Hideaki Fujiwara.

Nadal is also responsible for the top two in the Jan. 22 Bluebird Cup at Funabashi, Melchior and Quantum Wave. Both are trained by Mikio Matsunaga, who sent Lani to compete in all three jewels of the 2016 Triple Crown. Melchior is out of Sang Real, a Group 2-winning half-sister to the great Buena Vista, while Quantum Wave is a son of 2011 Cicada (G3) victress Quantum Miss.

Matsunaga has four more nominated, including Dragon, a son of Mind Your Biscuits who romped in his first dirt attempt at Chukyo, and turf performer Del Avar, a Frankel colt out of the accomplished Amour Briller, a half-sister to Lani.

Nadlal’s other noteworthy nominees are the unbeaten fillies Vilja Lied and Promised Gene, each 2-for-2 so far. While Promised Gene has raced around seven furlongs, Vilja Lied successfully handled 1 1/8 miles in her latest.

Trainer Koichi Shintani, whose Crown Pride tired to 13th in the 2022 Derby, has current Japan Road leader Myriad Love, the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun heroine. But he did not nominate Myriad Love. Instead, Shintani’s candidate is another filly, recent Chukyo maiden-breaker Queen’s Chocolat. From the first crop of 2020 Belmont and Travers (G1) star Tiz the Law, Queen’s Chocolat is out of the Grade 2-winning Candy Ride mare Ahh Chocolate.

The pioneering Hideyuki Mori has not had a Derby starter since 1995, when Sky Captain was the first to ship from Japan and finished 14th. But he has six sophomores engaged in hopes of making it back to Louisville, including Ecoro Azel and Shin Believe, both unplaced in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1), and Ecoro Sieg, eighth as the favorite in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1).

Hidetaka Otonashi, trainer of sixth-placer Derma Sotogake in the 2023 Derby, is poised to retire in early March. But the 70-year-old horseman has one last nomination in Canal Beagle, most recently fourth as the favorite in Vilja Lied’s allowance.

Among active Japan Racing Association trainers, Otonashi ranks second on the career win list to Sakae Kunieda. Best known for his work with the all-time great filly Almond Eye, Kunieda has an intriguing prospect in Logi Rickey, a five-length winner of a Nakayama newcomers’ race.

Perennial leading sire Into Mischief has no shortage of stateside contenders, and he could add to his roster with a few Japanese-based nominees out of classy U.S. racemares.

Poulsen, a son of multiple Grade 1 queen Separationofpowers (by Candy Ride), has won two of three starts. His lone loss came at the hands of Promised Gene. Danon Figo, Grade 1 heroine Ollie’s Candy’s first foal, was last seen running away with a Kyoto maiden at odds of 1-10 on Oct. 6. He had missed on debut to Myriad Love. Rhino, the first foal from 2020 Del Mar Debutante (G1) romper Princess Noor (by Not This Time), just broke his maiden at Chukyo by six lengths.

Not This Time is himself the sire of $850,000 OBS March juvenile Rossiniana, whose trainer, Tetsuya Kimura, became internationally famous through 2023 world champion Equinox. Second to Grande Plage in their mutual debut, Rossiniana moved forward to win handsomely next time at Nakayama.

Janadriyah, a Gold Dream half-brother to Group-placed stakes scorers Consigliere and Esmeraldina, is 2-for-2 so far, and Kalamatianos has won two straight on turf. Others worth watching include recent Chukyo allowance winners Isana and Berber Compass. Isana, by 2013 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) near-misser Declaration of War, was rebounding from a seventh in the JBC Nisai Yushun. Berber Compass, a Henny Hughes colt, beat a few fellow nominees in his allowance.

Finally, a postscript on the trio of European-based nominees, all representing Irish maestro Aidan O’Brien. They have yet to compete in a scoring race on the Euro/Mideast Road.

Two are sons of Triple Crown champion Justify – Aftermath, the third-placer in the Champagne (G2) at Doncaster who then graduated impressively in a Curragh maiden, and Isambard Brunel, a convincing maiden winner at Navan in his juvenile finale.

Both are out of blueblood daughters of Galileo. Aftermath’s mother is a full sister to Misty for Me from the family of current Kentucky Oaks points leader Tenma, while Isambard Brunel’s mother is a full sister to Found, heroine of the 2015 Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1) and 2016 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (G1).

Stablemate Mount Kilimanjaro, runner-up in the Criterium International (G1) at Saint-Cloud, is a French-bred by outstanding sire Siyouni. He too is out of a Galileo mare who is a half-sister to 2011 Haskell (G1) winner Coil.

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