Talking Horses: Japan’s racing dreams can become reality at Breeders’ Cup

While Equinox, officially the best horse in the world, is not here, Japan's challenge is spread across both the dirt and turf

The 40th running of the main Saturday card at the Breeders' Cup in California this weekend will, like most of the previous 39, have a bubbling undercurrent of intercontinental rivalry throughout the nine races, as many of the best racehorses in the world compete for $22m in prize money. Auguste Rodin and King Of Steel, first and second in the Derby at Epsom in June, are among the European star names that will take on the Americans on their home turf, alongside Mawj, Mostahdaf, Inspiral and plenty more.

It is a familiar dynamic to jumping fans used to the Anglo-Irish rivalry at Cheltenham each March. This time, however, it comes with a twist, because the latest renewal of this annual meeting of the continents promises to be a three-way go. As a result, Santa Anita in 2023 could yet come to be seen as the moment when the Breeders' Cup finally lived up to its longstanding claim to be the world championship" of horse racing.