Lucky Kid, a Godolphin homebred son of Discreet Cat, ran his way to the top of the "Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby" leaderboard with an upset victory in the Hyacinth Stakes Feb. 22 at Tokyo Racecourse.
Godolphin now holds two of the top three spots in the competition with one race to go. The top points-getter is guaranteed a spot in the Kentucky Derby (G1), won last year by Godolphin's Sovereignty.
Lucky Kid, out of the Pyro mare Happy Go Lucky, entered the Hyacinth as a 23-1 long shot. His only previous win came in a 2-year-old newcomer (first-time starter) event at 1,600 meters (about 1 mile) at Tokyo in October. He then was third in a minor stakes at Sonoda Racecourse and started 2026 by finishing eighth in a conditions race back at Tokyo.
He looked like a different horse in the Hyacinth.
Starting smoothly on the short turf run-in to the Tokyo dirt course, jockey Mirai Iwata kept the colt just back of the leading quartet through the run down the backstretch. He started his move as the 10-colt field negotiated the sweeping turn and steadily gained ground to take the lead with 200 meters left and drew clear.
He then had to survive a furious late charge by Don Erectus, a Danon Legend colt who also finished second in the first leg of the series. The winning margin was a neck.
"The horse tends to lose concentration when he gets ahead to the top, but he kept going today," trainer Yukihiro Kato said.
He earned 30 points to top the "Road" leaderboard.
Lucky Kid's sire, Discreet Cat, had a brush with United States Triple Crown glory in 2006. After winning the UAE Derby (G2) in Dubai, a Kentucky Derby qualifier, he was shipped back to the U.S. but did not participate in any of the Triple Crown races. Primarily limited to shorter races, he peaked with a victory in the 2006 Cigar Mile Handicap (G1).
He stood for Godolphin in both Kentucky and Japan and shuttled to South America before his death in 2023.
Lucky Kid's damsire, Pyro, stands at Darley Japan. Pyro also sired Godolphin's other contender in the "Japan Road" series, Pyromancer, who won the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun, earning 20 points in the series. The 15 points Don Erectus earned in the Hyacinth, plus five from his runner-up showing in the Cattleya Stakes in November, leave the two tied for second in points. However, Don Erectus is not currently nominated for the Triple Crown.
The series concludes with the Fukuryu Stakes March 28 at Nakayama Racecourse. The winner of that gets 40 points with 20, 12, 8, and 4 for the minor placings, so the Kentucky Derby bid remains very much up for grabs.
Kato indicated after the race that Godolphin might be more interested in the UAE Derby than in pursuing the "Japan Road" crown. The Dubai heat is 1,900 meters (about 1 3/16 miles).
"I think he (the horse) should be able to handle extended distance. We will make a decision as to whether we go to Dubai or not after talking with the owner," he said.
Video
