test

Instead, Going to Sky seized the moment, finding a narrow opening in the home straight before holding off Basse Terre’s powerful late charge and Danon History from behind to win his first G1 by a nose. He delivers another milestone for his sire, Contrail, and his jockey, Yutaka Take.

Take and Going to Sky Surge Late

The race began with King Glory commanding a nearly 20-length lead as the field raced down the backstretch. Lovcen, meanwhile, broke poorly and settled towards the rear, leaving jockey Kohei Matsuyama with a lot of ground to make up.

Yutaka Take Remakes Kikuka Sho History

The triumph was Take’s sixth Kikuka Sho title, making him the race’s outright record holderafter past wins aboard Super Creek in 1988, Dance in the Dark in 1996, Air Shakur in 2000, Deep Impact in 2005 and World Premiere in 2019.

At 57, Take also extended his record as the oldest jockey to win a JRA G1 race. It was his 87th JRA G1 victory and his third in 2026. The jockey later offered a light-hearted apology to fans who had hoped to see Lovcen complete the Triple Crown. “I’m sorry for not reading the room,” Take said, as quoted by netkeiba.

For trainer Yuki Uehara, Going to Sky delivered him his first G1 success since he opened his training stable in 2023. The trainer had already guided the colt to the G2 Aoba Sho in April, and the Kikuka Sho represented a watershed victory after he finished fourth in the Japanese Derby and sixth in the G2 St Lite Kinen.

Lovcen’s Triple Crown Bid Ends

Lovcen’s defeat came as a shock after his Satsuki Sho and Japanese Derby wins. The World Premiere colt had established himself as the spring’s standout three-year-old before winning the G2 Kobe Shimbun Hai, heightening the Triple Crown expectations.

However, his slow start at Kyoto left him poorly positioned, and despite progressing around the final turn, he could not match the leaders’ acceleration. It does not erase his prior achievements, but it leaves Japan’s 2026 Triple Crown incomplete - with its most recentwinner remaining Contrail, Going to Sky’s sire, who swept the Classics in 2020.

For Going to Sky himself, meanwhile, the Kikuka Sho represents a career-definingbreakthrough. He arrived as the third favourite, behind the leading Classic contenders, but delivered when the opportunity came.

The final leg of the Triple Crown belonged not to the horse seeking history, but to a patient colt and a veteran jockey who knew exactly when to strike