Japan's ascent on world stage shows no sign of stopping after record year

Outside the fireworks provided by Flightline and Baaeed, a breakthrough year for Japan was the international story of the year on the racecourse and this has been reflected in record representation in the World's Best Racehorse Rankings.

Flightline was deservedly top of the pile ahead of his British counterpart Baaeed, and horses from the US and Britain dominated the upper echelons of the rankings. Of the top 30, including ties, 14 were trained in Britain, ten in the US, five in Japan, four in Hong Kong, three apiece in France and Ireland, two in Australia and one in Germany.

But it is strength in depth where Japanese racing has seriously improved. A total of 48 in the rankings – which are comprised of horses rated 115 or above – maintains steady improvement in the last decade that had previously yielded a peak of 44 in 2019 before dipping to 37 and 42 in the last two years.