See which Japanese horses could be Derby contenders

During the 2021 Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar, a strong contingent of challengers from Japan made history. Victories from Loves Only You in the Filly & Mare Turf and Marche Lorraine in the Distaff represented Japan’s first two wins in North America’s year-end championships.

Will 2022 be the year Japan strikes in the Triple Crown? No horse based in Japan has ever tasted victory in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes or Belmont Stakes, though encouraging efforts from Lani (third in the 2016 Belmont) and Master Fencer (sixth in the 2019 Kentucky Derby) suggest the right horse will eventually come along and get the job done.

We’ll get our first chance to see Japan’s 2022 Kentucky Derby contenders in action when 15 horses face the starter in Saturday’s Cattleya Sho at Tokyo Racecourse (post time 12:15 a.m. EST). The 1,600-meter dirt race serves as the first leg of the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, awarding qualification points to the top four finishers on a 10-4-2-1 basis.

The full field can be viewed here.

Curious which horses you should follow? Let’s take a moment to highlight five of the most interesting contenders:

No. 2 Clos de Mesnil: The most likely Cattleyo Sho entrant to wind up competing stateside might be Clos de Mesnil, one of two fillies in the field. Trainer Hideyuki Mori has traveled the globe with such accomplished runners as Saudi Derby winners Full Flat and Pink Kamehameha, Dubai Golden Shaheen (G1) runner-up Matera Sky and Triple Crown contestants Ski Captain and France Go de Ina, so a road trip could certainly be in the cards for Clos de Mesnil if she runs well on the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Clos de Mesnil has already shown some early promise, beating males in her debut sprinting 1,200 meters at Hanshin. The daughter of multiple Grade 1 winner Practical Joke led from gate to wire and looms as an intriguing face while stretching out in distance.

No. 9 Peisha Es: Racing 1,600 meters at Tokyo might be unexplored territory for some of the Cattleya Sho entrants, but not Peisha Es. He delivered a sharp effort over this track and distance in his debut on Oct. 31, tracking the early tempo before finishing fastest of all (final 600 meters in a solid 37.2 seconds) to win by 1 1/2 lengths in 1:39.9 seconds.

A son of Japanese dirt star Espoir City, who contested the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Classic, Peisha Es brings a mix of tactical speed and finishing power to the Cattleya Sho. His maiden victory was flattered when runner-up Arthur Tesoro returned to dominate his next start by 3 1/2 lengths, so look for Peisha Es to produce a competitive effort on Saturday.

No. 10 Cosigliere: Just how dominant was Cosigliere in his debut racing 1,800 meters at Niigata on Aug. 22? Well, he won by a whopping 1.9 seconds, and his margin of victory wasn’t even officially measured. After tracking the early pace, Cosigliere was absolutely full of run down the homestretch, blazing the final 600 meters in a solid 37.7 seconds to reach the finish line in 1:53.5 seconds, just half a second off the juvenile track record.

Cosigliere hasn’t run since, but if he produces his A-game while cutting back in distance off the layoff, the son of Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner Drefong has to be viewed as a primary win threat under Japan’s leading jockey Christophe Lemaire.

No. 12 Best Regard: Unlike the first three runners we’ve highlighted, Best Regard isn’t undefeated—he actually finished seventh in his July 4 debut sprinting 1,200 meters on turf. But since switching to dirt, Best Regard has been unstoppable, dominating a 1,200-meter maiden sprint by eight lengths before posting a pacesetting score in the Platanus Sho.

In the Platanus Sho (held over the same track and 1,600-meter trip as the Cattleya Sho), Best Regard dashed the final 600 meters in a rapid 36.6 seconds to score by 1 1/2 lengths in a snappy 1:37.8 seconds. Repeating this performance might be all Best Regard needs to snatch a third straight win on Saturday.

No. 15 World Connector: Internationally successful jockey Ryan Moore is slated to take the mount on World Connector, a son of Grade 1 Cigar Mile winner Connect. Acquired for $410,000 as a 2-year-old in training, World Connector finished second in his debut racing 1,600 meters over the Tokyo dirt, but subsequently carved out the pace to nab a dead-heat win in a 1,600-meter turf test at Tokyo.

World Connector will return to dirt for the Cattleya Sho, where he figures to rank among the most popular choices in the betting. Trainer Kazuo Fujisawa has won over 100 group stakes, including the Tokyo Yushun (G1) (Japanese Derby), and his past U.S. starters include 2008 Peter Pan (G2) winner Casino Drive. The latter colt was an intended starter for the Belmont Stakes until a minor injury forced his withdrawal, so it’s hardly unrealistic to think we might see World Connector target the Kentucky Derby.

Which horse do you think is most likely to win the Cattleya Sho?