Following the running of this year’s Sapporo Kinen, an invitation to Bahrain will be extended to the winner, Top Knife. The five-year-old entire, ridden by Norihiro Yokoyama and trained by Mitsugu Kon, was an impressive winner of the Group 2 race, which drew a maximum field of 16 runners.

The win was Top Knife’s first victory in a Group race, although he had previously finished runner-up in the 2023 Sapporo Kinen as a three-year-old. Held up at the rear of the field in the early stages, Top Knife made smooth progress mid-way through the race before taking the lead in the home straight to win by a length from the strongly fancied Coconuts Brown.

Speaking after the race, Top Knife’s jockey, Norihiro Yokoyama, said: "I’m very happy. I’m always glad when we win, but especially with this horse, since I’ve been with him since he was a young colt. I’m relieved that he’s managed to make a comeback, and if he can stay on track from now, I believe he can blossom into something truly great.”

Run over 2000 metres on a right-handed track, the Sapporo Kinen mirrors the distance and track of the Bahrain International Trophy. The link up with the Sapporo Kinen is an indication of the growing stature of the Group 2 Bahrain International Trophy. It follows another significant development in 2024 when the first two runners to travel from Japan to Bahrain, Killer Ability and Yamanin Sympa, lined up for the race.

The next race with an automatic invitation to the $1million Bahrain International Trophy is the Sky Bet Strensall Stakes, a Group 3 race run on Saturday 23 August as part of York’s Ebor Festival. A previous winner of the Strensall Stakes is Spirit Dancer, the first two-time winner of the Bahrain International Trophy.

The final race is the Group 1 Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes, held at Leopardstown on Saturday 13 September and the feature event of Irish Champions Weekend. The winner of the race in 2024 was Economics, owned by His Highness Shaikh Isa bin Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Chairman of the Bahrain Turf Club.

This year’s running of the Group 2 Bahrain International Trophy, worth $1million, takes place on Friday 14 November. Entries for the race close on Wednesday 1 October.