Signing autographs in the streets and Marquand mania - a day in the wacky world of Japanese racing fans

Tokyo racecourse is towered over by the contrasting backdrops of the metropolis and snow-covered Mount Fuji, but an afternoon at the track also scales heights beyond expectations.

It's Japan Cup weekend but excitement remains contained ahead of the main event, deemed the world’s best on ratings 12 months ago. This is no spectacular Saturday and is without a Group race on the card, but that fails to temper enthusiasm from a racing fanbase like no other.

The celebration of racing’s stars, equine and human, is colossal and events off the track prove exactly that. John Stewart, the big-spending and outspoken owner of Sunday’s Japan Cup hope Goliath, is in town and offering free merchandise for his fast-growing Resolute Racing operation. 

He shares plans on X and heads at 10am to the Godzilla statue, a big tourist attraction in the Shinjuku district. It's a nod to his regard for the runaway King George winner, a monster on the track, but he is quickly blown away by the Japanese racing beast.

The notion that the giveaway would involve a small group of enthusiasts picking up a few baseball caps develops into well over 1,000 racing fans packing out a small square on the edge of the city. Local police – later pictured on social media also hunting for autographs – are involved in controlling the crowd as chanting erupts for the four-year-old French-trained gelding.

Seventeen miles away at the racecourse a similar, yet less raucous, theme evolves as European star jockeys Ryan Moore, William Buick – who rode a treble – and Tom Marquand land some of the early races on a 12-race card.

Marquand strikes on Henny Geist in race four, a 7f two-year-old event for newcomers on dirt, and some of the 34,000 racefans on track converge on the rails surrounding the winner’s circle and lean across to offer a wall of cards to be signed by the British jockey. Sharpie in hand, Marquand signs every one.

“There are a lot of things they do so well here, particularly fan engagement,” Marquand says after providing around 100 autographs in a 50-minute lunch break between races. “I do suppose there's a novelty in seeing British jockeys here; it’s a lot different to home.

“The reality is they are fans of the horses, which is great to see. The jockeys are a part of that and you’ll see that on Japan Cup day when thousands will attend a retirement ceremony for Auguste Rodin. I know Great British Racing does good work but how we really drive that is for better brains than mine.

“It’s not an overnight thing. The Japan Racing Association has done such a great job in promoting the sport and getting it to this level. We need to open our eyes in Britain to different ways of doing things and hope that they will work. It’s so interesting to see the fans here.”

Marquand also hails the seamless organisation of racedays, the more relaxed whip rules and the huge prize-money on offer as other perks of riding in Japan. He and his wife Hollie Doyle are enjoying their time so much they plan to extend their stay.

“We’ve applied for another couple of weeks and we’ll stay until January 13,” he says. “It’s really good being out here and we enjoy the lifestyle. Hollie and I have time to have a coffee or lunch together, so we feel a bit more of a couple. The only thing I do miss about Britain is the countryside for running and cycling.”

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'It would be unbelievable' - Auguste Rodin primed for date with destiny as Derby hero bows out in Japan Cup 

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