At the end of 2 miles, Croix du Nord found just enough left in the tank to hold off extreme longshot Wurttemberg (JPN) and win the Tenno Sho (Spring) (G1T) May 3 at Kyoto Racecourse.
The margin, officially a nose, was as thin as the gap in the odds was wide—just under 2-1 for the winner and just north of 208-1 for the upstart challenger. And the momentum was with Wurttemberg as the two flashed by the winning post.
"I really didn't know whether we had won or not, and it was a long time waiting for the final results," said winning jockey Yuichi Kitamura. "But I feel relieved that we were the winner."
Kitamura squeezed every ounce of stamina from the Kitasan Black colt, who had not previously been asked to run any farther than the 2,400 meters (about 1 1/2 miles) he conquered in winning the 2025 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby, G1T). He saved some fuel while keeping the 4-year-old near the middle of the 15-horse field through the first lap of Kyoto's outer turf loop.
Asked to pick things up heading into the final turn, Croix du Nord steadily gained outside tiring front-runners and got to the lead just inside the 300-meter mark—already farther than his previous best. For a brief time, he looked home free. Then, along came Wurttemberg to just miss the big prize in a race whose name translates to "Emperor's Prize".
Despite the victory and the successful stretch-out in distance, Kitamura said things were not all according to script.
"The plan was to have him relaxed going downhill in the first lap but the colt got a little keen," he said. "But, all in all, he proved himself to be a terrific colt with all-round capabilities and power."
Second-favorite Admire Terra finished third under Yutaka Take. The 2025 winner and third-favorite Redentor reported fifth for Christophe Lemaire. Croix du Nord finished the 3,200 meters in 3:13.7, shy of the course record of 3:12.5 set by Kitasan Black, the 2016 and 2016 Tenno Sho winner, who also sired Wurttemberg.
Croix du Nord scored his seventh win from 10 starts, a record featuring the Derby victory. His defeats came in the 2025 Satsuki Sho (Japanese Two Thousand Guineas, G1T), second behind Museum Mile; the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1), where he finished 14th over soft turf; and the Japan Cup (G1T), fourth in a superb heat won by Calandagan.
He prepped for the Tenno Sho with a victory in the 2,000-meter (about 1 1/4-mile) Osaka Hai (G1T) April 5.
The colt was bred by Northern Racing and totes the colors of Sunday Racing Co., Ltd. Takashi Saito trains.
Wurttemberg, by contrast, entered with just four wins from 26 starts and had never contested a grade 1 event. His two previous starts, however, came at 3,600 meters (about 2 1/4 miles) and 3,400 meters (about 2 1/8 miles), producing sixth- and fourth-place finishes, respectively.
Before the race, trainer Hiroshi Miyamoto sounded a positive note about Wurttemberg, which the punters obviously ignored.
"In his last two starts, he was caught inside and unable to move well. He did make a bit of headway in the end. ... If he'd had more room, he could have done better. He has an exceptionally big stride and can't quickly switch into a higher gear, but he can stay very well," Miyamoto said of Wurttenberg.
"It's a grade 1 race and the competition is going to be strong. This horse has stamina and I think he'll be able to bring that out to its best over the Kyoto outer 3,200 (meters) course," Miyamoto predicted.
