Top Japanese Sprinters Set for Takamatsunomiya Kinen

The Takamatsunomiya Kinen (G1), a rare top-level sprint on the Japanese calendar, usually attracts the cream of the Japanese sprint crop and the March 30 renewal at Chukyo Racecourse is no exception with last year's winner, Mad Cool, and the winner of last September's Sprinters Stakes (G1), Lugal both in the full field.

The problem is, the race has been ripe for upsets in recent years with three of the last five winners sent off at odds north of 25-1. Into the bargain, neither Mad Cool nor Lugal has fared particularly well since those 2024 highlights.

Mad Cool, a 6-year-old son of Dark Angel , went from the 2024 Takamatsunomiya Kinen to Hong Kong, where he finished 11th in the Chairman's Sprint Prize (G1). He returned from a five-month break to run 12th in Lugal's Sprinters Stakes.

If Mad Cool can win Sunday, he would become only the second horse to win back-to-back versions of the Takamatsunomiya Kinen, following Kinshasa no Kiseki in 2010 and 2011.

"He's looking almost too good," trainer Manabu Ikezoe said of Mad Cool. "I think his rotation this year is better than last year's ... He's not one to be bothered by the course, but the draw will be a factor."

An inside draw is seen as a bonus over the Chukyo Racecourse layout and Mad Cool couldn't be farther inside after drawing gate 1.

Lugal finished 10th in the 2024 Takamatsunomiya Kinen, a disappointment later blamed on an injury suffered during that race. He rebounded nicely to win the Sprinters Stakes in September, then took his own trip to Hong Kong only to report 11th in the Hong Kong Sprint (G1) in December. Returning without an intervening race, he looks to become the first Sprinters Stakes winner since Lord Kanaloa  in 2013 to go on to win the Takamatsunomiya Kinen the following year.

The up-and-down showings by Mad Cool and Lugal might leave things for a more consistent performer like Namura Clair, who has run well in eight group 1 races—albeit without winning any. The 6-year-old Mikki Isle  mare was second in last year's Takamatsunomiya Kinen and third in the Sprinters Stakes. She finished 2024 winning the Hanshin Cup (G2) with Mad Cool second.

Namura Clair's trainer, Kodai Hasegawa, also seeking his first grade 1 win, said the time might be right for him and his 6-year-old mare.

"I have no worries this time," Hasegawa said. "At 6 years old, she seems to have finally come into her own. It's rare to meet a horse like this and I am so very much hoping she can land a big title."

All of those make their 2025 debuts. Among those with more recent form:

• A Shin Fencer already has two wins this year, including the Silk Road Stakes (G3) in her last start.
• Kangchenjunga won the Hankyu Hai (G3).
• Mama Cocha, eighth in last year's Takamatsunomiya Kinen and fourth the Sprinters Stakes, started her 6-year-old season winning the Ocean Stakes (G3) at Nakayama Racecourse March 1.

The Takamatsunomiya Kinen starts in the Chukyo backstretch. A brief rise gives way to a dip of more than 3 meters, an almost equally sharp climb and a relatively level 100-meter run to the finish.