Vacation Takes Lead in Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby

Vacation, an Espoir City colt, took the lead in the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby with a victory Dec. 18 in the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun at Kawasaki Racecourse.

Trained by Kenichi Takatsuki and ridden by Hiroto Yoshihara, Vacation earned 20 points for the victory. Iolite and T's Dunk picked up eight and four points, respectively, for finishing second and third in the 1,600-meter (one-mile) race, run left-handed.

It was the third win from four starts for Vacation. He suffered his only defeat at Ohi Racecourse in September after two wins at Kawasaki, then bounced back to win at Funabashi in October before a 49-day hiatus.

All of his races have come at National Association of Racing tracks—the circuit comprised of local jurisdictions as opposed to the larger Japan Racing Association tracks. All were on the dirt, and the colt has not raced farther than 1,600 meters. His sire was a grade 1 winner at a mile and finished 10th behind Blame  and Zenyatta in the 2010 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Churchill Downs. 

The race was the second of four in the Japanese series, which grants the top points-earner an invitation to the 2020 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1). The Japan series is separate from the European Road to the Kentucky Derby, run in England and Ireland, and the main series of races in the United States and Dubai.

None of the top finishers from the first race, the Nov. 23 Cattleya Sho at Tokyo Racecourse, returned for the second leg. The winner of that race, Dieu du Vin, slid to second place in the standings.

The series continues with the Feb. 16 Hyacinth Stakes at Tokyo Racecourse, with 30 points to the winner, and concludes in Nakayama where the winner of the March 29 Fukuryu Stakes is awarded 40 points.

The series is designed to boost interest and wagering on the Run for the Roses among Japanese fans who eagerly follow the international exploits of their favorites. While it has not yet produced a winner in Louisville, it has had an impact on the the U.S. Triple Crown.

The 2015 Cattleya Sho winner, Lani, was shipped to the U.S. and competed in all three legs of the Triple Crown—finishing third in the 2016 Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1).

Master Fencer, who finished fourth in the Japanese series, accepted the invitation to the 2019 Derby when the top three points-earners declined. The Just a Way colt finished seventh and was placed sixth after the disqualification of Maximum Security. He went on to finish fifth in the Belmont Stakes and 13th in the Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T) in July when he was switched to the turf.