Scenic Blast will be the only foreigner to take on a strong domestic field in the G1 Sprinters Stakes at Nakayama this Sunday, October 4.  He arrived in Japan last Wednesday after a 15-hour trip from London.

“His condition is very good.  He has adjusted well to the change in environment,” trainer Daniel Morton said on Thursday.  “We will gradually pick up the pace of his training leading up to race.”

Scenic Blast was last seen finishing down the track in the July Cup at Newmarket.  But he can wrap up the Global Sprint Challenge title in the sixth race of the series at Nakayama.

The Scenic gelding holds a 17-point lead at the top of the Challenge table thanks to wins in the Lightning Stakes at Flemington and the King’s Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot.  Fleeting Spirit, the July Cup winner, is currently in second spot ahead of J J The Jet Plane, Cannonball and Art Connoisseur.

Should Scenic Blast win the 43rd Sprinters Stakes or the Hong Kong Sprint in December, his connections would also claim a US$1 million bonus for winning in three separate continents.  This Sunday’s race is the richest of the eight races in the Global Sprint Challenge.  It’s worth 202 million yen (AUD 2.59 million) of which 95 million yen (AUD 1.22 million) in allocated to the winner.

The Perth sprinter will join Silent Witness and Takeover Target among the visitors to win the race since the Global Sprint Challenge was launched in 2005.

JRA sprinters to challenge Scenic Blast include Sleepless Night (2008 Sprinters Stakes), Laurel Guerreiro (Takamatsunomiya Kinen), B B Guldan (Keeneland Cup) plus Kanoya Zakura and Ultima Thule who have won the last two editions of the Centaur Stakes.

Ultima Thule (5m Fuji Kiseki – Air Thule by Tony Bin) is a Shadai homebred and she turned in a superb performance to defeat Sleepless Night in the G2 Centaur Stakes at Hanshin on September 13.