Two Points Races Added to Japan's Road to the Derby

Churchill Downs announced May 22 that two races would be added to the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, the series of races that could produce a starter in the 3-year-old classic that was rescheduled for Sept. 5.

The extended Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, which carves out one entry in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) for a runner from Japan, will include the June 21 Unicorn Stakes (G3) and the July 8 Japan Dirt Derby. The Unicorn will be contested at one mile on dirt at Tokyo Racecourse, and the Japan Dirt Derby will be run at the Derby distance of 1 1/4 miles at Oi Racecourse. Points for the top four runners in each race will be 40-16-8-4.

"We are thrilled that our great partners with the Japan Racing Association and the Tokyo Metropolitan Racing Association helped us identify two important races for our Road to the Kentucky Derby extension, one at JRA's Tokyo Racecourse and the other with the esteemed group at Tokyo City Keiba," said Mike Ziegler, the executive director of racing for Churchill Downs Inc. "We've seen international interest grow in the Kentucky Derby since our partnership with the JRA was formalized in 2016, and we're encouraged that this year's Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby could produce another meaningful starter."

Last year, Master Fencer finished sixth in the Kentucky Derby and fifth in the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1). Other Japan-based horses to run in the Kentucky Derby: Ski Captain (14th in 1995) and Lani (ninth in 2016).  

"I feel quite honored that the grade 3 Unicorn Stakes has been added to the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby. In the past, winners of the Unicorn Stakes have progressed to win grade 1 races later in their careers. As the gateway to success in our 3-year-old dirt division, I firmly believe this race will play an important role and fulfill its duty as one of the qualifying races for the Kentucky Derby," said Masayuki Goto, the president and CEO of the Japan Racing Association. "Worldwide, we are experiencing very difficult times caused (because of) COVID-19. Even in this situation, I sincerely hope one of our horses will emerge from the renewed format of the series to qualify and add extra excitement to this year's rescheduled running of the 146th Kentucky Derby on Sept. 5, as Master Fencer did last year"

The racing secretary and chief operating officer of the Tokyo Metropolitan Racing Association, Hiroshi Saito, echoed that sentiment.

"We are honored to have the Japan Dirt Derby be selected as a Kentucky Derby points race. The Japan Dirt Derby brings together the best domestic 3-year-olds in the country, and we are confident that this year will have a strong field of contenders," Saito said. "Even though it is due to the date change of the Kentucky Derby that we have been added to only the 2019-20 renewal of the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, as the final race in the series with a major impact on the final standings, I sincerely hope that the Japan Dirt Derby will be an exciting event to watch for racing fans both in Japan and the United States."

Four races in the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby have been run this year. Eight Triple Crown nominees have earned points in the series: Café Pharoah (30), Vacation (20), Tagano Beauty (12), Dieu du Vin (10), Yaugau (6), American Face (4), Longonot (3) and Daimei Corrida (1).