Japan's Kentucky Derby qualifying series begins with Cattleya Stakes

The Kentucky-bred Snappy Dresser is among 16 entrants in Saturday’s $199,600 Cattleya Stakes at a mile on dirt for 2-year-olds at Tokyo Racecourse in Japan, the first of four qualifying races in that country for the 2025 Kentucky Derby.

Snappy Dresser, owned and bred by Godolphin Racing, won his debut in a seven-furlong race for first-time starters at Tokyo Racecourse on Oct. 20. The colt, by Union Rags, is trained by Masahiro Otake.

Snappy Dresser’s main rival in the Cattleya Stakes is Natural Rise, a Japanese-bred colt by Kizuna, who won his debut in a race for first-time starters at 1 1/16 miles at Sapporo Racecourse in July.

The field also includes Clay King, who won a seven-furlong race for first-time starters in June and was third in a seven-furlong allowance race at Chukyo Racecourse on Sept. 28.

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The winner of the Cattleya Stakes receives 10 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby. The three other races that are part of the series will be held on Dec. 11 and in February and March, with greater point values available to the winners of those races.

The horse with the most qualifying points from the series is granted a berth in the Kentucky Derby. In recent years, some Japanese-based 3-year-old have earned berths in the Kentucky Derby by winning or placing in stakes in the United Arab Emirates or California, though.

Earlier this year, T O Password was fifth in the Kentucky Derby at 48-1 after winning the final qualifying race of the Japanese series in March.

Snappy Dresser is a full brother to the three-time graded stakes winner Caramel Swirl, who won the Grade 2 Raven Run Stakes at Keeneland in 2021.

Caramel Swirl finished third in the Grade 2 Gallant Bloom Stakes at Aqueduct in October 2023 in her final start, and was promoted to first after the first two finishers – Sterling Silver and Headland – were disqualified for causing interference in the stretch.

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