No fewer than 13 LONGINES Hong Kong International Races (HKIR) entrants will vie for glory in the JPY390.6 million (approx. HK$19.72 million) G1 Mile Championship (1600m) at Kyoto on Sunday (23 November).

British contender Docklands will attempt to make history by becoming the first foreign-trained horse to win the Mile Championship before travelling to Hong Kong for the HK$36 million G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Mile (1600m) at Sha Tin on 14 December, where he could clash again with several of Sunday’s rivals.

Heading Japan’s LONGINES HKIR entries is Soul Rush – Romantic Warrior’s conqueror in the G1 Dubai Turf (1800m) at Meydan in April – as well as Ascoli Piceno, Cervinia, Champagne Color, Elton Barows, Gaia Force, Jantar Mantar, Lebensstil, Long Run, Magic Sands, Off Trail and Win Marvel.

Last year’s Mile Championship victor Soul Rush returns for his fourth tilt at the race, having overcome a bone fracture after finishing third to Jantar Mantar in the G1 Yasuda Kinen (1600m) at Tokyo in June.

Resuming with a fine third in the G2 Fuji Stakes (1600m) at Tokyo on 18 October, Soul Rush will bid to become the seventh horse to win successive Mile Championships after Nihon Pillow Winner (1984 & 1985), Daitaku Helios (1991 & 1992), Taiki Shuttle (1997 & 1998), Durandal (2003 & 2004), Daiwa Major (2006 & 2007) and Gran Alegria (2020 & 2021).

Jantar Mantar shapes as the stiffest challenge after his second in the Fuji Stakes.

“We’d gotten him (Jantar Mantar) ready for the Fuji Stakes with an eye on this Grade 1,” trainer Tomokazu Takano said. “Even so, from around the final bend and down the straight and when he lined up with the others out in front, it felt like he was back at his best.

“I think he really ran well, chasing down the strong winner while carrying 59kg (130lb).”

With five career wins, including three Group 1 triumphs over 1600m, Jantar Mantar has missed the top-three only once in nine starts, with a distant 13th behind Voyage Bubble in last season’s LONGINES Hong Kong Mile.

An explosive Yasuda Kinen victory showed the colt was back to his imperious best.

“For the Yasuda Kinen, he was coming off a long layoff after his poor Hong Kong run, so we had to train him harder,” Takano said. “This time, he doesn’t need that kind of work. It’s more about maintaining sharpness. Everything is going smoothly. He’s in a completely different place now.”

Trained by Harry Eustace, Docklands won the G1 Queen Anne Stakes (1600m) at Royal Ascot in June and has settled in well since arriving in Japan.

The horse finished 12th in last year’s LONGINES Hong Kong Mile, but his recent form has been sound, finishing ahead of Ascoli Piceno when a close fourth in the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois (1600m) at Deauville in August before also finishing fourth in the G1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (1600m) at Ascot in October.

In a race of tremendous depth, Gaia Force, Lebensstil, Ascoli Piceno, Cervinia, Elton Barows and UK-bred Off Trail are all regarded as winning contenders.

The Mile Championship is carded as S1-1 and will be run at 2.40pm (Hong Kong time) on Sunday, 23 November.