Bathrat Leon Upsets Godolphin Mile for Japan

When things are going right, they're going right. And things are really going right these days in horse racing for Japan—no more so than in the Godolphin Mile Sponsored by Nakheel (G2) at Meydan Racecourse as Bathrat Leon , a rank outsider in the global wagering, led all the way to a 1 1/4-length victory.

Desert Wisdom  chased through the stretch run to finish second, two lengths better than Storm Damage  in third.

Another Japanese horse, Soliste Thunder, was fourth.

Bankit  ran best of the American horses in the race, finishing sixth.

It was only Bathrat Leon's second start on dirt and he finished 13th in the previous effort. It also was his first placing in a group-level race. In the Mile, jockey Ryusei Sakai gunned the 4-year-old Kizuna  colt right to the lead from the inside gate, dictated a brisk pace, and wasn't challenged thereafter.

"He jumps well and gets into the race," Sakai said of Bathrat Leon, adding the colt appreciates the Meydan surface.

"He likes this stuff. It's a little tighter (than the Japan tracks)."

Ever ebullient trainer Yoshito Yahagi, sporting a colorful floppy hat in the winner's enclosure, gave full credit to his rider, saying Sakai "rode very well. Excellent."

Asked the secret of his recent global success, Yahagi laughed and said, "I don't know. I have no idea."

Bathrat Leon paid $123.70 to win in simulcast wagering conducted in the United States.