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This is where the good stuff lives. Deep-dive previews, race reactions, standout performances, and the stories that define the sport—if it’s happening on the track, it’s here. From Japan to Europe, Australia to America, you’ll find sharp analysis, global form breakdowns, and the kind of insight that connects racing’s biggest stages. Whether you follow the classics, the sprinters, or the stayers, this is your home for world-class racing coverage—updated regularly, with no fluff.
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A Tribute to Daiwa Major (2001 - 2026)
On 20th January 2026, the Japanese Thoroughbred industry paused to mourn the passing of a titan. Daiwa Major, the chestnut powerhouse who redefined the mile category and survived a career-threatening surgery to become a legend, died of natural causes at the age of 25.
Archie Brookes
Jan 218 min read
Understanding the JRA Circuit: A Professional Guide to Japanese Racecourses
Japanese horse racing has established itself as a dominant force on the global stage, a success rooted in a meticulously designed infrastructure that encompasses both its world-class racecourses and its elite centralised training hubs.
Archie Brookes
Jan 208 min read
A Paradigm Shift in Japanese Racing: Forever Young and the Evolution of the JRA Horse of the Year Award
The 2025 racing season in Japan represents a seminal moment in the history of the sport, characterised not by traditional turf dominance, but by a significant structural evolution within the Japan Racing Association (JRA). In an unprecedented decision, the selection committee has conferred the title of Horse of the Year upon Forever Young, a specialist in dirt racing.
Archie Brookes
Jan 65 min read
2025 Group 1 Champions Cup Preview: Narukami’s Rise and the Battle for Dirt Supremacy
The 2025 Champions Cup represents a turning point. It is no longer a search for a successor, but the arrival of a new force. Narukami steps into Chukyo not as a hopeful three-year-old, but as the colt the entire dirt division must now answer to. Lemon Pop’s retirement created a vacuum. Narukami has spent the season rising into the empty space, turning potential into expectation.
Archie Brookes
Dec 5, 20256 min read
2025 Japan Cup Preview
On Sunday, November 30, the 45th Japan Cup brings together a field of 19, a world champion raider, two classic-winning three-year-olds, last year’s Derby hero, and a pack of hardened stayers and spoilers. It is the richest turf race on the Japanese calendar, with ¥1.09 billion in the pot and ¥500 million to the winner, but the real prize is status: the right to be called the new king of 2400 metres on firm Japanese turf.
Archie Brookes
Nov 27, 202520 min read
Calandagan: The Aga Khan's Red Flag in the Land of the Rising Sun
The 45th running of the Japan Cup at Tokyo Racecourse is more than a late-season Group 1. It is a test of global breeding philosophies, a referendum on two decades of Japanese dominance, and a stage where one foreign challenger attempts to break a long-standing barrier.
Archie Brookes
Nov 26, 20256 min read
2025 Mile Championship Preview – Who Will Be Japan’s Autumn Mile King?
The 42nd Japan Mile Championship (G1) at Kyoto brings the country’s best milers back to the traditional stage on Sunday. Run over 1600 meters on the right-handed outer turf course, this is Japan’s defining autumn mile, the natural counterpart to the spring Yasuda Kinen and a key stepping stone toward December’s Hong Kong Mile.
Archie Brookes
Nov 21, 202512 min read
Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup 2025 Preview: Class, Depth and a Kyoto Test
The 50th running of the Queen Elizabeth II Cup (G1) on Sunday, 16 November 2025, returns this flagship mares’ championship to its traditional home at Kyoto Racecourse and does so with the weight of half a century of history behind it.
Archie Brookes
Nov 14, 20258 min read
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