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Oguri Cap
Japanese-bred Thoroughbred racehorse From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Oguri Cap (Japanese : オグリキャップ, 27 March 1985 – 3 July 2010) was a Japanese thoroughbred racehorse and stud, sired by Dancing Cap.[1] Oguri Cap was inducted into the Japan Racing Association Hall of Fame in 1991. A horse from the countryside who found success at the national level, he was known as a member of the "Heisei Big Three", a trio of racehorses who reignited interest in horse racing in Japan alongside Super Creek and Inari One.
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Popularity
Oguri Cap had a major impact on the sky Japanese horse-racing scene, thanks in no small part to his humble beginnings.
Due to starting his career in regional races, his move to the National scene came too late for him to be registered for the 1988 season of the Japanese Classic races, specifically the Satsuki Shō, the Tōkyō Yūshun (Japanese Derby) and the Kikuka Shō, collectively called the "Japanese Triple Crown". However, as Oguri Cap continued to win race after race, there was a popular outcry to allow him to participate in the classics despite missing the deadline. While the Japan Racing Association stood firm against allowing Oguri to participate, they did soon after change their rules to be less strict on registration, allowing late entries and even foreign-born horses to run in the classics, though with a hefty fee attached.[2] One of the beneficiaries of this new rule was T. M. Opera O.
Oguri Cap was extremely popular with fans, earning the nickname "Idol Horse", thanks to drawing crowds who watched the races for more than just race-betting, and was one of the first racehorses to have plush dolls made in his image, a form of merchandise that is now commonplace.[2]
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Racing career
In May 1987, Oguri Cap made his debut at Kasamatsu Racecourse in Gifu Prefecture. After winning 9 starts in 11 races, including 7 consecutive victories and 4 stakes wins, he was transferred to the ownership of Chuo Horse Racing in January 1988. He recorded 13 more wins, including 4 Grade I stakes, 4 Grade II stakes, and 4 Grade III stakes. Some of his biggest wins included the 1989 Mile Championship (GI), two-time wins in the Arima Kinen (Grand Prix) (GI), and a win in the 1990 Yasuda Kinen (GI). He also won the New Zealand Trophy (GII), the Takamatsunomiya Hai (GII) and won the Mainichi Ōkan (GII) twice.
Oguri Cap was known for his rivalry with fellow gray-haired horse of the year Tamamo Cross, with whom he fought three times at the 1988 Tenno Sho (Autumn), Japan Cup, and Arima Kinen.
In 1988, Oguri Cap won the JRA Award for Best Three-Year-Old Colt and in 1990, he won both the JRA Award for Best Older Male Horse and Japanese Horse of the Year. His nicknames included "Oguri" and the "Gray-Haired Monster".
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Racing statistics
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In total, Oguri Cap raced 32 races in his career, with 22 wins and 4 Grade I victories.[3][4]
Turf
Dirt
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Retirement
After retirement in 1991, Oguri Cap was sent to the Yushun Stallion Station to stand stud. He was not able to produce any racers of his caliber, and in 2007 he was retired from stud duty. After retirement, he lived as a pensioned stallion at the Yushun Stallion Station. On July 3, 2010, he fractured one of the tibias in his legs in an apparent pasture accident, and was subsequently euthanized.[5]
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Legacy
A life-sized statue of Oguri Cap was erected at the Yushun Memorial Park in Niikappu, Hokkaido one year after the horse's death.[6][7]
In addition, another Oguri Cap statue was erected at Kasamatsu Racecourse and later refreshed in 2019.[8]
Popular culture
An anthropomorphized version of Oguri Cap has made an appearance as a playable character in the video game franchise Umamusume: Pretty Derby voiced by Tomoyo Takayanagi.[9]
Oguri Cap's real-life career would later be dramatized in Umamusume's spin-off manga series Uma Musume Cinderella Gray. Produced by Junnosuke Itō, written by Masafumi Sugiura and illustrated by Taiyō Kuzumi, Cinderella Gray began serializing in Shueisha's Weekly Young Jump on June 11, 2020 with the first collected tankōbon volume published on January 19, 2021.[10][11] As of September 2025[update], twenty-one volumes have been released.[12] It received an anime adaptation on 2025, airing on two split cours.[13] The first season, focused on Oguri Cap's debut at the Kasamatsu racecourse in 1987 to the 1988 Autumn Tenno Sho, aired from April 6 to June 29, 2025 with the second cour premiering on October 5, 2025.[14]
In the manga and anime series Nichijou, the character Mai Minakami owns a dog named Oguri Cap.[15]
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Pedigree
Through Never Say Die, Oguri Cap is a descendant of War Admiral and Man o' War.
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See also
References
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