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Japan is seeking a first win in the HK$36 million G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile (1600m) since 2019 and Yasutoshi Ikee suggested a change in tactics could help Soul Rush be the one to provide some more international glory on Sunday (8 December).
The trainer of the brilliant Orfevre ran Soul Rush in this same race last year, where he was held up before closing well to finish fourth behind Golden Sixty.
The six-year-old, who was beaten half a length by Hong Kong's Romantic Warrior in the G1 Yasuda Kinen (1600m) at Tokyo Racecourse in June, returns off the back of a biggest win so far in the G1 Mile Championship (1600m) at Kyoto last month.
"Soul Rush is improving compared to last year but to be honest last year our strategy didn't work well," Ikee said. "Hopefully this year our strategy will work better than last year."
Asked to elaborate on that strategy, he added mischievously: "It's confidential."
Ikee also saddled Zeffiro to take second in last year's LONGINES Hong Kong Vase (2400m) and seems keen to make his mark in Hong Kong.
"Of course, when we're sending horses to race we need to be confident," he said. "There are uncertainties, lots of difficult things in horse racing, but we'll do what we can do, and as much as possible.
"In the world horse racing industry everyone is watching this and as a trainer, you need to prove how strong the Japanese horses are on the international stage.
"I walked the turf track on Friday morning, it seems faster compared to the other years I've been and it looks very similar to Kyoto, where he won the Mile Championship. If that's the case, we expect him to run really well."
Admire Mars was the last Japanese horse to win the LONGINES Hong Kong Mile. He was a three-year-old who won both the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes and the NHK Mile Cup. Both those races are on the record of Jantar Mantar, who would certainly be a new mile star for Japan were he to prevail.
"Our rider thinks he is a different class," Tomokazu Takano, the trainer of Jantar Mantar mentioned back in April.
The 48-year-old has plenty of experience with smart horses, having saddled five individual Group 1 winners including the 2015 Japan Cup winner, Shonan Pandora.
Jantar Mantar was an unbeaten juvenile Group 1 winner and subsequently claimed the champion two-year-old colt title. Darley Japan imported his sire, Palace Malice, from America in February this year and he covered 262 mares, which was the highest number in Japan in 2024.
In his three-year-old season, Jantar Mantar targeted the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2,000 Guineas) and finished second behind Justin Milano in the G3 Kyodo News Hai (1800m) as a preparation race. In the Satsuki Sho over 2000m, Jantar Mantar finished third behind Justin Milano again.
Connections decided then decided to step back to 1600m and Jantar Mantar won the G1 NHK Mile Cup impressively against the Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) runner-up, Ascoli Piceno, remaining unbeaten over his most favourable distance.
In his autumn campaign, he bypassed the G2 Fuji Stakes due to fever, so appears here for the first time in a race since May.
"It was a minor one and is no problem at all now," Takano said. "This is his first international travel, however he is in good form in Hong Kong. Yuga Kawada was on board for his breeze on Wednesday and Kawada was happy how he moved."
