All New Shooters in "Japan Road to the Derby" Race Two

The "Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby" takes its customary detour to Kawasaki Racecourse Dec. 15 for the second leg of a four-race series that offers the winner a guaranteed spot in the Churchill Downs starting gate on the first Saturday in May.

As it hits the halfway point, though, the "Japan Road" is a series in name only as none of the 2-year-olds who competed in the first leg, the Cattleya Stakes at Tokyo Racecourse Nov. 27, returns for the second leg, the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun.

Kawasaki Racecourse, located in the greater Tokyo area, is part of the National Association of Racing—a structure separate from the major-league Japan Racing Association tracks. It's included annually in the Churchill Downs-organized series because the NAR facilities are noted for conducting dirt racing.

Kawasaki, in particular, is popular as a family-friendly destination and for its night racing, administered by the Kanagawa Prefecture Kawasaki Racing Association.

Five of the entrants in the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun are JRA-based horses with the others representing six different NAR tracks.

Sekifu, a Henny Hughes  colt, looks for his fourth straight win. His last effort was a listed race at Sondoa Racecourse Nov. 25. Combustion, by Discreet Cat , was second in that race after starting his career with victories at Tokyo and Chukyo racecourses and returns for another shot.

Sekifu is trained by Koshiro Take and Mirco Demuro is booked for the ride. Demuro has the hot hand after riding Circle of Life to victory Dec. 12 in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (G1).

Ice Giant and Dry Stout both enter undefeated after two starts. Ice Giant, by Dunkirk  out of the Captain Steve mare Ice Doll, is 2-for-2 with the latest a score in listed race over a sloppy Monbetsu Racecourse track. Dry Stout, by Sinister Minister, won at Chukyo and Toyko racecourses, both times on off tracks.

Kaikano Kiseki is the only filly in the field. By Kinshasa no Kiseki , she finished second in a grade 3 affair at Hakodate Racecourse after winning her debut but then reported fifth in her latest effort after a four-month layoff.

Among the NAR types, Nine Viper has two wins and two seconds from five starts, all at Kawasaki. Both of the Hokko Tarumae  colt's victories came in the slop. Nudge, a son of Fenomeno , has won four of nine starts and was second to Ice Giant in their last race.

S'il Te Plait, Marine Sky and Ryan, all have four previous wins. Ryan is the sole representative of the late Deep Impact.

The winner of the 1,600-meter (about 1 mile) Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun is awarded 20 points on the "Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby" leaderboard and will take over the top spot. Second gets 8 points with 4 and 2 points for the third- and fourth-place finishers.

Consigliere earned 10 points for winning the Cattleya Stakes.

The outcome of the series likely won't be determined until it's over as the points on offer grow at each stop along the way.

Churchill Downs started the series after Lani won the 2015 Cattleya and then finished third in the 2016 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets (G1). It has not had much impact on the Run for the Roses thus far.

Master Fencer (JPN) finished fourth in the series and accepted the 2019 Derby invitation when the top three points-earners declined the honor. The Just a Way  colt finished seventh but was placed sixth after the disqualification of Maximum Security  .