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The much anticipated return of Grade 1 action in Japan happens on Sunday, Sep. 30, when the Sprinters Stakes kicks off, the 52nd running of the race will be at Nakayama Racecourse in Chiba Prefecture.

The much anticipated return of Grade 1 action in Japan happens on Sunday, Sep. 30, when the Sprinters Stakes kicks off the second half of the year’s top level horseracing. The 52nd running of the race will be at Nakayama Racecourse in Chiba Prefecture, about an hour or so from downtown Tokyo. The race became a Grade 1 in 1990, and an international Grade 1 in 1994. Run over 1,200 meters on turf, this year sees 22 horses nominated for the maximum 16 runner field, and most age groups are represented, right up to the 10-year-old Snow Dragon, winner of the race in 2014. Hong Kong runner, Lucky Bubbles, adds international flavor, and bids to become the third winner of the race for Hong Kong, after victories by Silent Witness (2005) and Ultra Fantasy(2010).

Step races leading up to this year’s Sprinters Stakes have included the Grade 3 Keeneland Cup run at Sapporo in August and the Grade 2 Sankei Sho Centaur Stakes run at Hanshin in September – both races over 1,200 meters. Since 2000, there has only been one 3-year-old winner of the Sprinters Stakes (Aston Machan in 2007), and seven first favorites have found the winner’s enclosure during that period. In the past 10 years, 4-year-olds have won three times, and 5-year-olds and 6-year olds have also claimed the race three times apiece, leaving no generation at a clear advantage.

The Nakayama track has seen fast times posted this year, and it remains to be seen if Lord Kanaloa’s Sprinters Stakes record time of 1 minute, 6.7 seconds back in 2012 can be beaten. There’s a prize money boost this year, with a total value of just over JPY238 million (around $2 million), and the winner receives JPY110 million. Post time for the big race on Sunday is 15.40 local time.

Here’s a look at some of the top Japanese contenders for the Sprinters Stakes:

 
Fine Needle : The 5-year-old by Admire Moon is looking to become just the fifth winner of the Grade 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen and the Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes in the same year. He put in a fine run most recently, defying the heavy rain shortly before the race, to win the Grade 2 Sankei Sho Centaur Stakes over 1,200 meters at Hanshin early this month. He was in good position, and jockey Yuga Kawada timed everything to perfection to get the horse to run out a 1 1/2 length winner of the race. Connections were happy with the performance. “In the Centaur Stakes, he was returning from overseas and had to carry 58kgs, so there was a bit of anxiety, but he won well. It was a good start to the autumn campaign, and we’re able to look ahead with some confidence,” said assistant trainer, Yoshinori Unoki.

 
Red Falx : The evergreen 7-year-old has won the last two Sprinters Stakes, and is bidding to become the first horse ever to win the race three times, what’s more in consecutive years. That fact alone will have his supporters cheering extra hard on Sunday. He finished ninth in his most recent race, the Grade 1 Yasuda Kinen over a mile at Tokyo in June. Jockey Keita Tosaki will take the reins from Mirco Demuro, who has to miss the race through suspension. The trainer of Red Falx, Tomohito Ozeki, commented: “In his last two races, he started slowly and left himself with too much to do at the end. Consequently his start is a worry, so just recently in training I had jockey Mirco get him to break from the gates just as I want him to do in the race itself.”

 
Nac Venus : The 5-year-old mare by Daiwa Major has finished in the first three in her last four races, all over 1,200 meters, and won the Grade 3 Keeneland Cup most recently by 2 1/2 lengths. Her big race jockey will be Joao Moreira, who rode her to that emphatic victory in the Keeneland Cup. “It was hot at the Miho Training Center after her last race, so I sent her for a short break to the farm where it was cooler. Everything’s been fine on her return to the stable, and with a bit more time before the race, she should be fine going into it,” trainer Hiroaki Sugiura said.

 
Seiun Kosei : 5-year-old Seiun Kosei has seven wins and six seconds from 23 career starts, and bounced back last time when winning the Grade 3 Hakodate Sprint Stakes over 1,200 meters in June. Trainer Hiroyuki Uehara, who won five Grade 1s with Daiwa Major, and has another with Seiun Kosei (Takamatsunomiya Kinen in 2017) is pleased with the horse. “Last year’s Hakodate Sprint Stakes was run at a fast pace and the hot weather left the horse feeling tired. This year it was cooler, and so it’s been easier getting him ready for the autumn,” the trainer said.

 
Ares Barows : The 6-year-old by Deep Impact comes into contention here through his two sprint victories this summer, both at Grade 3 level, the latest being the Nishinippon Corp. Sho Kita Kyushu Kinen in August. This will be his first try at a Grade 1. Trainer Koichi Tsunoda said, “He got things to go his way in his last race, and when you consider he had to carry 56kgs, overall it was a good performance. He’s a horse with definite ability, and now he’s more relaxed, he’s able to run a lot better.” Tsunoda, a Derby winning ex-jockey, is looking to capture his first Grade 1 title as a trainer.

 
Let'S Go Donki : Versatility is a word that comes to mind with this 6-year-old mare, and she’s up for another challenge here after finishing second in last year’s Sprinters Stakes, and second in this year’s Grade 1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen at Chukyo in March. Let’s Go Donki, and her regular jockey Yasunari Iwata, will be looking to land another Grade 1 to add to her Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) win in 2015. “Two weeks ago, she idled a little when closing at the finish in training. There’s no problem with her breathing, and with time still to go before the race, I plan to have her race jockey put her through her paces in the last week,” trainer Tomoyuki Umeda said.