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“We never stop trying – maybe Equinox can be the next champion stallion”

Posted on by angelo
“We never stop trying – maybe Equinox can be the next champion stallion”

HOKKAIDO, Japan – Japanese breeders have no shortage of patience. It is here that the middle-distance horse is truly admired and cultivated, perhaps more than in any other racing nation.

That patience will come in handy, according to Naohiro Hosoda of Shadai Stallion Station, when it comes to getting the most out of Equinox (Jpn) at breeding.

Officially the best horse the county has ever produced, having retired with a rating of 135 after a four-length triumph in the Japan Cup, Equinox is arguably the most exciting addition to Shadai’s world-renowned stallion operation.


Its opening price of 20 million yen (about $140,000) is a record and puts it on a par with its own sire, Kitasan Black (Jpn).

While Hosoda acknowledged the huge expectations surrounding Equinox at stud, he pointed out that the six-time Group 1 winner took time to reach his full potential and it was not until he was four that the horse reached his peak.

“You know, he’s a middle-distance horse and he’s not the kind of horse that’s going to produce two-year-olds,” he explained. “He was a very good two-year-old, very good at three, but he was just great at four. Unbeatable. Yet he was beaten in a Guineas and a Derby at three because he wasn’t fully developed yet.

“I think the breeders who support Equinox will be patient. The other plan might be to send him faster mares. Maybe if the breeders sent him more two-year-old mares, that might help him, I would say. That’s just my opinion. He’s covered 200 mares already and a lot of good ones.”

He added: “There is huge national demand for Equinox. I would say that Coolmore and his colleagues have been in the sport for a long time and are very professional. The Wertheimers, for example, chose Kizuna (Japan) without hesitation. Newcomers like Equinox, perhaps, appeal more to the national market than to the big owner-breeders. The pressure is only national, but it is nevertheless huge.”

Hosoda has been around long enough to know that all that glitters isn’t gold. He certainly tries to manage expectations when a horse like Equinox starts his stallion career, but keeping control is easier said than done when it comes to the greatest Japanese racehorse of all time.

“New stallions are extremely popular,” Hosoda says. “Owners and breeders have high expectations for these new stallions. It’s not just the Japanese, but I think the industry loves new things. Always new, new, new. You know, I prefer proven horses because I feel safer. Like Kizuna and Kitasan Black, for example, they are proven stallions. But owners are always dreaming and that’s why they like new stallions.”

If recent rumors are to be believed, Hosoda and Team Shadai may not have to wait for Equinox to crown their next champion, as rumors are rife surrounding Contrail (Jpn). The son of Japanese Triple Crown winner Deep Impact (Jpn) already dominated the JRHA Select Sale foal session last year, when one of his foals sold for ¥520,000,000, and it seems no one would be surprised if such a result were to be repeated in the ring this week.

Hosoda said: “There’s a lot of domestic pressure behind him too. He’s a son of Triple Crown winner Deep Impact and he’s been very popular, but his first foals have been very impressive and so two are his second crop. I mean, have you seen him walk? Like a cat. You can barely hear a sound. It’s like his feet don’t touch the ground, he walks so well. I’ve seen a lot of his foals – not just here but at smaller farms – and they’re really, really good. Conformation, quality, walk – everything looks very promising with him.”

Coolmore is understood to have sent at least one mare to Contrail but, on the whole, international clients seem happier to row with proven Shadai stallions.

Kizuna, himself a winner of the Japanese Derby, is the sire of Bathrat Leon (Jpn) and Deep Bond (Jpn), to name just two. He is having a stellar year with 131 individual winners and leads the sire championship in earnings by his progeny for 2024, with ¥2,687,545,500 (approximately €15.5 million).

Kitasan Black needs no introduction either. The sire of Equinox, he is also having another solid season, with 57 individual winners already. His best horses this year include G1 Takarazuka Kinen runner-up Sol Oriens (Jpn), Gaia Force (Jpn) and Wilson Tesoro (Jpn).

Hosoda said: “The Werteimers sent us a few mares in foal to Kizuna. I think he is a future champion stallion because his averages are very high. Not only does he produce top-class horses, but he also has many stakes-placed horses and graded performers. It doesn’t matter whether the distance is long or short.

“Coolmore have sent mares to Kitasan Black, Contrail and I think one to Equinox as well. You know Shunsuke, who is the son of Katsumi Yoshida (the boss of the Northern farm), is a good friend of MV Magnier. They are in regular contact and Shunsuke has also sent mares to Coolmore in the past. And then the Wertheimers, they have been sending us mares since the Sunday Silence days, so it’s a long, long relationship.”

Some stallions, unlike Equinox, start their breeding with much more modest expectations. Take for example Suave Richard (Jpn), who was a surprise to become a leading first-year sire in 2023. He has done it the hard way and those closest to the young stallion, who now rides for more than seven times his original fee of ¥2 million (€11,500), say he can continue to surprise.

“It’s a big surprise,” Hosoda said. “And not from top mares. He improved on his own and I think he still has a lot to do. Usually, Heart’s Cry (Jpn)’s offspring improve with age. They are slow-developing horses but Suave Richard’s damsire is quite precocious. His two-year-olds performed very well last year, which surprised us. That’s why his price was raised to 15 million yen. Considering he started at 2 million yen, it’s a nice step up.”

Hosoda concluded: “It’s very exciting with Equinox. His performances on the track are superb. For me, his performance in winning the Tenno Sho in Tokyo in the fall was superb. He’s in great shape but his time is phenomenal. He’s setting a record pace. A crazy time. He’s one of the best racehorses I’ve seen in my life. Certainly the best in recent times. You know, we never stop trying to find the next champion stallion and maybe he will be one day.”