Japan: Jantar Mantar becomes champion miler with Kyoto's Mile Championship

Jantar Mantar clinched his second career championship in Japan with a win by 1 3/4 lengths in Sunday’s Grade 1 Mile Championship at Kyoto Racecourse.

Jantar Mantar (who paid $4.30 in American pools) won the Grade 1 Yasuda Kinen at a mile on turf in June. Those two wins are enough to give Jantar Mantar the title of 2025 champion miler.

Ridden by Yuga Kawada in the $2.2 million Mile Championship, Jantar Mantar stalked pacesetter Toshin Macau, who led by about five lengths midway through the race. Racing wide, Kawada brought Jantar Mantar closer to the lead in early stretch and reached the front with more than a furlong remaining.

Jantar Mantar finished clear of 7-1 Gaia Force, with the triple-digit longshot Water Licht a nose behind in third. Docklands, winner of the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot in Britain in June, finished ninth at 24-1.

Soul Rush, who won the 2024 Mile Championship and was named Japan’s champion miler for that season, finished sixth at 9-2. Soul Rush won the Group 1 Dubai Turf at 1 1/8 miles at Meydan Racecourse in April and was later third in the Yasuda Kinen and Fuji Stakes.

The Mile Championship was run on a clear afternoon, which allowed Kawada to gauge the progress of the chasing pack in the stretch.

“In the homestretch, with the sun setting behind us, I was able to check by the shadows that no one was sneaking up on us,” Kawada told Japan Racing Association publicity.

Gaia Force and Jantar Mantar were first and second, separated by a half-length, in the Grade 2 Fuji Stakes at a mile on turf at Tokyo Racecourse on Oct. 18.

“Although we lost our recent race, it was a good prep for today and enabled the colt to run in good rhythm with a good feeling,” Kawada said.

Trained by Tomokazu Takano for Shadai Race Horse Co., Ltd., Jantar Mantar has won 6 of 10 starts. He was the champion 2-year-old male of 2023 for a campaign that included a win in the Grade 1 Asahi Hai Futurity. In 2024, Jantar Mantar’s lone win was the Grade 1 NHK Mile for 3-year-olds at Tokyo.

“Owing to his outstanding talent and to the hard work of everyone involved, the colt has won all Grade 1 mile events open for colts and horses which I think is absolutely incredible,” Kawada said.

Jantar Mantar is a Japanese-bred colt by Palace Malice, who is out of India Mantuana, the winner of the Grade 3 Red Carpet Handicap at Del Mar in 2018.

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