Danon Bourbon certainly doesn’t come into the 152nd Kentucky Derby (G1) with the same buzz as Japan’s star Forever Young two years ago, but can this entry from Japan give the country its first Derby win? (Forever Young was a close third). Danon Bourbon earned an invitation to the Derby after his win in the Fukuryu Stakes and is one of two Japanese entries (Wonder Dean is the other).
Japan has been a force in international racing for many years. American audiences learned that at the 2021 Breeders' Cup at Del Mar when trainer Yoshito Yahagi swept the Filly & Mare Turf (G1) and Distaff (G1). In 2024, his colt Forever Young lost by two noses in the Kentucky Derby (G1), where he would have given Japan a breakthrough victory if runner-up Sierra Leone hadn't interfered with him down the stretch.
Like Forever Young, Danon Bourbon enters the Derby undefeated, but he lacks the reputation and buzz he brought to the Derby. Danon Bourbon, a 2024 Keeneland Sale graduate, has done everything right in three starts won by a combined 18 1/2 lengths, but it's hard to measure the horses he routed against the ones he'll challenge in Louisville.
Japan-based Kate Hunter, a native of Nashville, recruits Japanese horses for the United States. Among her many roles is serving as Churchill Downs' Asia representative.
“Danon Bourbon's performances have been fantastic,” she said on a BloodHorse podcast. “His first three races were so impressive, and all of the best dirt horses in Japan come out of its four-race Road to the Derby.”
The Kentucky-bred must overcome many challenges in his return to his homeland. He's never run on a lefthanded track, and two of his wins came in the mud. In his favor is his versatility, because he's won on the lead, stalking and from far back. The travel factor is also an unknown. He's never left Japan, and he faces a 6,600-mile journey.
Can Danon Bourbon overcome all those obstacles? He clearly has talent, but that's a lot to ask.
There are no Equibase ratings for Danon Bourbon, who will be racing in the United States for the first time.
He’s 3-for-3 and has won by a combined margin of 18 ½ lengths in staking/front-running fashion. Two of his wins have come over a muddy track.
Unless you can get at least 20-1, betting on Danon Bourbon is very iffy. Maybe a $2 win-place stab, but that's about it.
- The word Bourbon in his name is a nod to Kentucky, where he was born and raised. He was purchased for $450,000 as a yearling
- Trainer Manabu Ikezoe was an assistant to his father, Kaneo, from 2006-2015 before a stint at Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle stable in Ireland
- Atsuya Nishimura, 26, has ridden Danon Bourbon in his last two races. He began his professional career in 2018 and also has competed in Hong Kong.
Ed McNamara is an award-winning racing writer who has covered the sport since 1981 for The Bergen (N.J.) Record, Newsday, ESPN, Thorocap, and USRacing. He is the author of Cajun Racing: From the Bush Tracks to the Triple Crown and Racing Around the World, and a contributor to The Most Glorious Crown and The Racetracks of America. He has also written for racing publications in France and Italy.
