The Japanese Duo Masquerade Ball and Wurttemberg Fine-Tune Details for a Historic Challenge at Ascot

They completed a fresh breeze at Newmarket ahead of the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1); Masquerade Ball will seek revenge against Calandagan following their tight finish in the Japan Cup, while Wurttemberg will look to capitalize on his stamina

NEWMARKET, England (Special for Turf Diario).- The Japanese delegation continues to fine-tune details ahead of next Saturday's King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1), and on Wednesday Masquerade Ball and Wurttemberg completed a fresh breeze on the Long Hill Polytrack in Newmarket, where they have been housed since arriving in the United Kingdom.

Both horses traveled on July 12 from Tokyo, with layovers in Anchorage (Alaska) and Amsterdam, before completing the final leg by road to James Horton's facilities, where they are carrying out the final phase of their preparation.

The highest expectations are focused on Masquerade Ball, who will clash once again with defending champion Calandagan (Gleneagles), just eight months after the memorable battle they waged in the Japan Cup (G1), where the French colt prevailed by merely a head. That performance allowed the Japanese representative to tie for second place in the 2025 Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings with a 128 rating, trailing only his conqueror.

Trained by Takahisa Tezuka, the son of Duramente entered that race off an authoritative victory in the Tenno Sho (Autumn-G1) before finishing second behind Romantic Warrior (Acclamation) earlier this year in the FWD QEII Cup (G1) at Sha Tin.

"I took charge of Masquerade Ball this year, and he has really matured immensely from three to four years old, both physically and mentally. He is a much bigger and stronger horse," Tezuka explained.

The trainer admitted that the long trip was one of his primary concerns, though everything went smoothly.

"I was a bit nervous about the travel, but everything turned out very well. The horse is very happy and has trained even better than I expected."

Tezuka did not hide the significance of competing at Ascot either: "The King George is one of the most important races in Great Britain. It is a dream to bring a horse like him here. We did everything possible to give him the best preparation, so we hope to get a good result, though we also want to enjoy the experience because it is a true honor to be present."

Although Calandagan naturally looms as the main rival, the conditioner recalled that the challenge extends far beyond one horse. "It is the most important race of Masquerade Ball's sporting life so far. Calandagan is not the only runner we must account for, even if only a head separated us in the Japan Cup. There are many high-level rivals, and it will be interesting to see how much our horse has evolved since then."

French jockey Christophe Lemaire, regular rider of the colt, went so far as to state months ago that Masquerade Ballpossesses the qualities to become "one of the greats" of Japanese racing, praise that Tezuka welcomed with great satisfaction.

"Christophe rode extraordinary horses like Equinox (Kitasan Black). For someone like him to say something like that is a huge honor for us."

The trainer also revealed that the decision to target the King George stemmed from owner Teruya Yoshida, a declared admirer of Ascot Racecourse.

"Since last year he insisted on coming to this race. The King George was always our main goal in Europe, even over the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe."

Regarding the athletic challenge, Tezuka acknowledged that Ascot's undulating course poses a question mark for a horse accustomed to Japan's flat tracks.

"Over there we practically have no tracks with elevation changes, so it will be a completely different experience. The downhill section can be tricky because it is impossible to replicate during training, but we trust he will adapt. I used to think 2000 meters was his ideal distance, though now I believe 2400 meters suits him even better."

The Japanese contingent will be rounded out by Wurttemberg, a 6-year-old trained by Hiroshi Miyamoto who comes in off the finest effort of his career, losing by a nose in the Tenno Sho (Spring-G1) over 3200 meters to Croix du Nord(Kitasan Black).

"The owner gave me the choice between running in the King George or the Goodwood Cup. I chose the King George because I consider it the most prestigious race in Great Britain; to me, it is number one," Miyamoto commented.

The trainer believes the track configuration will play in his charge's favor: "Wurttemberg has tremendous stamina, having competed over distances up to 3600 meters. I think Ascot's 2400 meters, with its undulations, should suit him."

Furthermore, he celebrated having Oisin Murphy booked for the mount. "He is the number one jockey here. He knows Ascot inside and out, and we have great confidence that he can bring out the best in the horse."

The 2026 renewal of the King George will assemble a field of highest caliber, featuring defending champion Calandagan, his stablemate Goliath (Adlerflug), Irish Derby (G1) hero Benvenuto Cellini (Frankel), multiple stakes winner Minnie Hauk (Frankel), English mare Kalpana (Study of Man)—runner-up in last year's edition—and now two Japanese contenders who arrive with ample credentials to dream of making history.