You know how punters get lost in too much data or bet blindly? I break down the stats and trends so you can feel confident youâre betting with more than just gut instinct.
2026 Mile Championship Preview
Scheduled to take place in November of each year at the Kyoto racecourse is the Mile Championship, a G1 race that is contested over a mile on the turf and is open to runners aged three or older.
The race is considered a prep race for the Hong Kong Mile, which is run the following month. This race attracts some top European jockeys with the British flat season being over, Ryan Moore, William Buick and Christophe Lemaire have all won this race in recent years.
Mile Championship Information:
- Mile Championship Past Winners
- Mile Championship Trainer Statistics
- Mile Championship Jockey Statistics
You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Other Principal Races in Japan section for links to these.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2025
How competitive is the Mile Championship market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 10 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2025 when the race had an over-round of 126%. The race in 2020 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 128%, whilst on average over the last 10 renewals of the Mile Championship, the over-round has been 127%, which means the bookie expects to pay out ÂŁ100 for every ÂŁ127 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 Mile Championship Trends. See which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal. We also have a section that looks at the Mile Championship Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run Mile Championship races over the last 10 renewals:
- Jantar Mantar (1:31.30) in 2025
- Gran Alegria (1:32.00) in 2020
- Soul Rush (1:32.00) in 2024
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 10 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the Mile Championship next time out, then you would have backed a total of 0 winners. Backing all 8 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of -8.00. Why not head over to the racing predictions for tips on other races today?
The runner that holds the record over the past 10 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2017 renewal when Persian Knight from Yasutoshi Ikee under the guidance of Mirco Demuro, won in a time of 1:33.80, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Jantar Mantar, trained by Tomokazu Takano and ridden by Yuga Kawada set the quickest time of 1:31.30 in the 2025 renewal.
What the expert says...
Andy Powell - Horse Racing Betting Expert - OLBG.com
Mile Championship Past Winners
Here are the Mile Championship past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the year of the race, the horse which won, along with the age & weight of the horse. Also detailed is the stall from which the horse came and the total number of runners in the race. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Mile Championship are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse (Drawn) | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 1:31.30 | Jantar Mantar (JPN) 4yo 9-2 (15 of 18) 4/5F | Yuga Kawada Tomokazu Takano (JPN) |
| 2024 1:32.00 | Soul Rush (JPN) 6yo 9-2 (13 of 17) 43/10 | Taisei Danno Yasutoshi Ikee (JPN) |
| 2023 1:32.50 | Namur (JPN) 4yo 8-11 (16 of 16) 163/10 | Kota Fujioka Tomokazu Takano (JPN) |
| 2022 1:32.50 | Serifos (JPN) 3yo 8-11 (10 of 17) 41/5 | Damian Lane Mitsumasa Nakauchida (JPN) |
| 2021 1:32.60 | Gran Alegria (JPN) 5yo 8-9 (12 of 16) 7/10F | Christophe-Patrice Lemaire Kazuo Fujisawa (JPN) |
| 2020 1:32.00 | Gran Alegria (JPN) 4yo 8-9 (4 of 17) 3/5F | Christophe-Patrice Lemaire Kazuo Fujisawa (JPN) |
| 2019 1:33.00 | Indy Champ (JPN) 4yo 9-0 (5 of 17) 54/10 | Kenichi Ikezoe Hidetaka Otonashi (JPN) |
| 2018 1:33.30 | Stelvio (JPN) 3yo 8-11 (1 of 18) 77/10 | William Buick Tetsuya Kimura (JPN) |
| 2017 1:33.80 | Persian Knight (JPN) 3yo 8-11 (18 of 18) 78/10 | Mirco Demuro Yasutoshi Ikee (JPN) |
| 2016 1:33.10 | Mikki Isle (JPN) 5yo 9-0 (16 of 18) 49/10 | Suguru Hamanaka Hidetaka Otonashi (JPN) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Mile Championship have been based:
- JPN: 10 winners with an additional 20 placings from 170 runners
- GB: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 2 runners
2025 Mile Championship Replay
Mile Championship Trainer Statistics
There are multiple leading trainers in the Mile Championship over the last 10 renewals, with Yasutoshi Ikee, Tomokazu Takano, Hidetaka Otonashi, and Kazuo Fujisawa having all won the race two times. Yasutoshi Ikee's winners have been with Persian Knight (2017) and Soul Rush (2024). Tomokazu Takano's winners have been with Namur (2023) and Jantar Mantar (2025). Hidetaka Otonashi winners have been with Mikki Isle (2016) and Indy Champ (2019). Kazuo Fujisawa winners have been with Gran Alegria (2020 & 2021).
Here are some of the top Mile Championship trainer statistics over the last 10 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yasutoshi Ikee | 13-2-6 | +1.10 | -2.95 |
| Tomokazu Takano | 8-2-2 | +11.10 | +2.55 |
| Hidetaka Otonashi | 6-2-3 | +6.30 | +1.65 |
| Kazuo Fujisawa | 3-2-2 | +0.30 | -0.35 |
| Mitsumasa Nakauchida | 5-1-2 | +4.20 | +0.60 |
| Tetsuya Kimura | 4-1-1 | +4.70 | +0.85 |
| Takayuki Yasuda | 7-0-2 | -7.00 | -6.00 |
| Hideaki Fujiwara | 6-0-0 | -6.00 | -6.00 |
| Takahisa Tezuka | 5-0-1 | -5.00 | -4.50 |
| Yoshito Yahagi | 5-0-0 | -5.00 | -5.00 |
Mile Championship Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the Mile Championship over the last 10 renewals is Christophe-Patrice Lemaire, who has won the race two times, with those two winners coming from Gran Alegria (2020 & 2021).
Here are some of the top Mile Championship jockey statistics over the last 10 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christophe-Patrice Lemaire | 10-2-3 | -6.70 | -6.85 |
| Yuga Kawada | 10-1-5 | -8.20 | -6.60 |
| Kenichi Ikezoe | 6-1-1 | +0.40 | -2.30 |
| Kota Fujioka | 5-1-1 | +12.30 | +4.15 |
| Mirco Demuro | 5-1-2 | +3.80 | +0.40 |
| Taisei Danno | 3-1-1 | +2.30 | +0.15 |
| Damian Lane | 2-1-1 | +7.20 | +3.10 |
| William Buick | 2-1-1 | +6.70 | +2.85 |
| Suguru Hamanaka | 2-1-1 | +3.90 | +1.45 |
| Kohei Matsuyama | 9-0-1 | -9.00 | -8.50 |
2026 Mile Championship Trends
Favourites finishing positions (oldest to latest): 5, 5, 13, 2, 1, 1, 5, 7, 4, 1
The percentage shown is the percentage of the total number of runners who fell under that factor. High percentages are less appealing than lower ones, as you would expect them to do well. The trend information is based on the available information on the Racing Post in terms of previous runs, etc.
- 10 / 10 (35%) - Within the first 6 of the market
- 10 / 10 (35%) - No bigger than 163/10
- 10 / 10 (41%) - No bigger than 29/1 (Career)
- 10 / 10 (52%) - No bigger than 36/5 (LTO)
- 10 / 10 (52%) - Highest Placed is G1
- 10 / 10 (53%) - Break of 29 - 267 days (Last Win)
- 10 / 10 (54%) - No bigger than 41/10 (Debut)
- 10 / 10 (55%) - Achieved an RPR of 114+ (Last 3)
- 10 / 10 (60%) - Had 1 - 2 wins (Season)
- 10 / 10 (65%) - Had 2 - 4 placings (1 Year)
- 10 / 10 (70%) - Ran in 5 - 15 races (Career)
- 10 / 10 (71%) - Won within last 4 starts
- 10 / 10 (72%) - Achieved an RPR of 103+ (LTO)
- 10 / 10 (72%) - Beaten no more -2Âźl (Debut)
- 10 / 10 (73%) - Achieved an RPR of 110+ (Trip)
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101 Ways to find Winners in Horse Racing
Mile Championship Trend Analysis
â The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had 0 career places in the class, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-83.
Here are the most recent winning draws, along with the further placings in brackets:
- 2025: Winner in 15 (6,3) [18 Runners]
- 2024: Winner in 13 (17,14) [17 Runners]
- 2023: Winner in 16 (1,5) [16 Runners]
- 2022: Winner in 10 (3,6) [17 Runners]
- 2021: Winner in 12 (3,13) [16 Runners]
The course which has produced the most winners of the Mile Championship is Tokyo; there have been a total of 8 winners of this race who ran at Tokyo last time out.
The race is open to both sexes, with male runners having produced a total of 7 winners from a total of 144 runners, while female runners have produced 3 winners from a total of 28 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Mile Championship:
- Deep Impact (3 Wins)
- Harbinger (2 Wins)
These are the stallions whose offspring have not produced a winner of the Mile Championship despite multiple attempts:
- Hearts Cry (0 Wins from 9 runners)
- King Kamehameha (0 Wins from 7 runners)
- Screen Hero (0 Wins from 5 runners)
Looking at the winning odds over the last 10 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Namur in 2023, winning for Tomokazu Takano at odds of 163/10 under the guidance of Kota Fujioka. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 10 renewals, there have been 3 winning favourites in the race. All figures and trends above, such as the horse's previous runs, are based on the information that is available on the Racing Post.
Route to the Mile Championship
Many trainers target races as preparation for the Mile Championship. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:
| Info | Last Race |
|---|---|
| 2025 - Jantar Mantar Tokyo - 2nd of 14 (19/10) | Fuji Stakes |
| 2024 - Soul Rush Tokyo - 2nd of 17 (11/5) | Fuji Stakes |
| 2023 - Namur Tokyo - 1st of 12 (19/5) | Fuji Stakes |
| 2022 - Serifos Tokyo - 1st of 15 (23/10) | Fuji Stakes |
| 2021 - Gran Alegria Tokyo - 3rd of 16 (9/5) | Tenno Sho (Autumn) |
| 2020 - Gran Alegria Nakayama - 1st of 16 (6/5) | Sprinters Stakes |
| 2019 - Indy Champ Tokyo - 3rd of 10 (4/1) | Mainichi Okan |
| 2018 - Stelvio Tokyo - 2nd of 13 (53/10) | Mainichi Okan |
| 2017 - Persian Knight Tokyo - 5th of 15 (3/1) | Fuji Stakes |
| 2016 - Mikki Isle Nakayama - 2nd of 16 (41/5) | Sprinters Stakes |
Article Contributor Information
We are fortunate to have an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to the creation and maintenance of this Mile Championship Preview are Andy and James. They both work on the Horse racing tips team, looking after the tipsters and managing the tips settlement, whilst also creating and managing all of the horse racing event previews for International racing.
James Banting
Expert Guide
Andy Powell
Expert Guide
Other Principal Races in Japan
Here are some other notable races throughout Japan which take place during the racing season that we also have blogs for.
