Mayano Top Gun (マヤノトップガン, March 24, 1992 - November 3, 2019) was a Japanese

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

. His wins included the Kikuka Sho,

Arima Kinen The Arima Kinen (有馬記念) is a Conditions races, Grade I Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Japan open to Thoroughbreds three-years-old and above and the world's largest betting horserace. It is run in late December each year, over ...

Takarazuka Kinen The Takarazuka Kinen (宝塚記念) is a Grade I flat horse race in Japan for Thoroughbreds aged three and over a distance of 2,200 metres (approximately miles) at Hanshin Racecourse (阪神競馬場) in late June. It is one of the two "All-Sta ...

Hanshin Daishoten , derived from the second kanji from and the first kanji from (but in ''on''-reading instead of ''kun''-reading), refers generally to Osaka, Kobe, and the surrounding area in the Kansai region of Japan. In the context of a region of Hyōgo ...

and

Tenno Sho The is a horse race held twice a year in Japan, once in the spring and once in the autumn. "Tenno" means "Emperor of Japan". The races are both International Grade 1 races. Prior to the 2007 races, both Tenno Sho races were Japanese domestic Gr ...

. In the 1995 JRA Awards, he was declared the

Japanese Horse of the Year The Japanese Horse of the Year is the highest honor given to the most outstanding horse in Japanese thoroughbred horse racing. It is awarded annually by the Japan Racing Association (JRA). Since 1987 the honor has been part of the JRA Awards. This ...

and the Best Three-year-old Colt.

Background

Mayano Top Gun was a chestnut horse with a white blaze and a long white

stocking Stockings (also known as hose, especially in a historical context) are close-fitting, variously elastic garments covering the leg from the foot up to the knee or possibly part or all of the thigh. Stockings vary in color, design, and transpar ...

on his left foreleg bred in Japan by Etsuo Kawakami. He was sired by the American stallion Brian's Time, who finished second in the

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held annually on Armed Forces Day, the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland (except in 2026 when it will move to Laurel Park (race track), Laurel Park dur ...

in 1988 before becoming a highly successful breeding stallion in Japan. His dam Alp Me Please was sired by

Blushing Groom Blushing Groom (8 April 1974 – 6 May 1992) was a French champion Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and sire (horse), sire. Background He was bred by American businessman John McNamee Sullivan and was raced by Aga Khan IV, HH Aga Khan IV. A ...

and was a half-sister of the

Grand Prix de Paris The Grand Prix de Paris is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), an ...

winner Swink: as a descendant of the broodmare Sonrisa, she was also a distant relative of the

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over the worldwide classic distance of . Colt (horseracing), Colt ...

winner Ruler on Ice.

Racing career

1995: three-year-old season

Mayano Top Gun began his career racing on dirt and won three of his nine races in the early part of 1995. He was then switched to turf being placed twice at Grade II level in September and October. He emerged as top class performer in the late autumn, winning the Kikuka Sho over 3000 metres at

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

on 5 November. In December he contested one of Japan's most prestigious

weight-for-age {{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Weight for Age (WFA) is a term in thoroughbred horse racing which is one of the conditions for a race. History The principle of WFA was developed by Admiral Rous, a handicapper with the English Jockey Club. Rou ...

races, the

over 2500 metres at Nakayama and won from Taiki Blizzard and Sakura Chitose O.

1996: four-year-old season

In March 1996, Mayano Top Gun was matched against the 1994 Japanese Horse of the Year

Narita Brian Narita Brian (, Hepburn: ; May 3, 1991 – September 27, 1998) was a Japanese racehorse. Until T M Opera O surpassed him in 2000, Narita Brian was the world's top money earner. Background Narita Brian was a bay horse sired by the American-br ...

in the

and was beaten into second place. In June at Kyoto he recorded his biggest success as a four-year-old when he won the

over 2200 metres, beating Sunday Branch and the mare

Dance Partner Dance Partner, (Japanese: ダンスパートナー, foaled 25 May 1992) is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. From the first crop of foals sired by Sunday Silence, she won four of her twenty-five races and finished second nine times ...

. Later in the year he finished second to

Bubble Gum Fellow Bubble Gum Fellow, (, 11 April 1993 – 26 April 2010) was a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In 1995 he was rated the best juvenile colt of his generation in Japan when he won three of his four races including the Grade I Asahi Hai S ...

in the Autumn edition of the

1997: five-year-old season

In March 1997, Mayano Top Gun won the Hanshin Daishoten from Big Symbol and Gigaton. A month later he contested the Spring edition of the Tenno Sho over 3200 metres at Kyoto. He won from Sakura Laurel (winner of the race in 1996) with Marvelous Sunday in third place.

Assessment and awards

In 1995, Mayano Top Gun was voted

and Best Three-year-old Colt.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1992 racehorse births 2019 racehorse deaths Japanese Thoroughbred Horse of the Year Racehorses bred in Japan Racehorses trained in Japan Thoroughbred family 14-a Kikuka-shō winners Arima Kinen winners Takarazuka Kinen winners Tenno Sho winners