Japan: Jun Light Bolt ($27) likes the dirt, takes Champions Cup

Jun Light Bolt was a good horse on turf in Japan from 2019 to 2021, winning four of 21 starts and finishing second in a stakes.

On dirt, his career has risen to a new level.

Jun Light Bolt won Sunday’s Grade 1 Champions Cup at Chukyo Racecourse in Japan, the nation’s leading dirt race, in his fourth start on the surface.

Jun Light Bolt ($27) closed from ninth in a field of 16 to beat 10-1 Crown Pride by a neck, finishing 1 1/8 miles in 1:51.90. Hapi (12-1) finished third, beaten 1 1/2 lengths, and was a neck in front of 3-5 favorite T O Keynes, who won the 2021 Champions Cup.

Crown Pride was 13th in the Kentucky Derby earlier this year. The $1.72 million Champions Cup was Crown Pride’s first start against older horses.

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Jun Light Bolt was ridden by Yukito Ishikawa, who has been aboard the 5-year-old horse by King Kamehameha in his four stats on dirt. The Champions Cup was the first Grade 1 win for the 27-year-old Ishikawa.

“I can’t find any other word to describe this other than happy,” Ishikawa told Japan Racing Association publicity. “I tried to feel the horse’s rhythm and was confident that if we (could) find an open space after entering the lane, he would burst out.

“The colt responded so well that I knew we could win.”

The 5-year-old Jun Light Bolt has won 3 of 4 starts since moving to dirt at the beginning of this year.

Owned by Junji Kawai and trained by Yasuo Tomomichi, Jun Light Bolt has never been worse than second on dirt, finishing second in a minor stakes in July before winning his third consecutive start on the surface in the Champions Cup.

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