Japan holds its breath as presence of Deep Impact hovers overs Derby

Deep Impact attracted a fanatical following in Japan with his racecourse exploits and a dozen years later, having subsequently made an impact as a stallion, he continues to captivate.

As a consequence the Investec Derby on Saturday will be the subject of unprecedented media attention in Japan and hundreds of thousands will stay up beyond midnight to see if Saxon Warrior, one of his sons, can achieve a landmark triumph in the greatest Flat race of them all.

Deep Impact won seven Grade One races, including the Japanese Triple Crown in 2005. When he finished a close third in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe the following year it seemed every other person on the racecourse was a Japanese racing fan bedecked in his colours of waving a flag.

The now 16-year-old is the world's most expensive advertised sire and stands at Shadai Stallion Station in Japan, where he commands a fee of ¥40m (about £275,000).

Galileo, who also features prominently in Saxon Warrior’s pedigree, no doubt commands an even bigger sum but the cost of liaisons with him are listed as “private”.

Racecourse Media Group (RMG), the UK-based media rights organisation which produces and distributes top-class horse racing around the world, and Jockey Club Racecourses (JCR), owners of Epsom Downs Racecourse, have facilitated widespread coverage in Japan.

The Derby will be shown live for the first time on Japan's specialist horse racing channel the Green Channel, while Saxon Warrior's performance will be the focus of Sunday's edition of Good Morning Japan, broadcast on NHK (Nippon Hoso Kyokai - Japan Broadcasting Corporation).

Japan's only public broadcaster is also filming at Epsom this weekend. The programme regularly attracts an estimated 10 million viewers and should Saxon Warrior win, the story will also be run on NHK's news bulletins.

Fuji TV, the leading commercial broadcaster in Japan, will be airing a one-hour documentary dedicated to Saxon Warrior’s bid for victory in Britain's richest race, which is expected to be viewed by an audience of up to eight million.

The documentary team have been based in the Britain and Ireland over the past month and have captured footage at Newmarket and Ballydoyle, the base of Aidan O'Brien, trainer of Saxon Warrior.

A number of other Japanese broadcasters are on standby to access the Derby footage, should Saxon Warrior triumph.

"The Derby at Epsom is attracting attention beyond usual race fans because one of the sons of Japan’s most famous race horse, Deep Impact is participating," Isao Oguri, Chief Producer of Good Morning Japan, said: "The presence of Saxon Warrior has even generated interest from people who are not remotely interested in horse racing here."

Stephen Wallis, The Jockey Club Group's International Director, said: "Saxon Warrior's participation in the Investec Derby has triggered an explosion of media coverage in Japan.

“The interest is a result of the Japanese's high regard for the tradition and heritage associated with the race, blended with their fanaticism for Saxon Warrior's sire, Deep Impact.

"The Japan Racing Association has been a huge help in facilitating the media coverage in Japan, which will result in around 20 million viewers there being able to follow the story of Saxon Warrior's bid for Investec Derby glory."

The £1.5-million showpiece has attracted other leading broadcasters from around the world, including NBC Sports in the US, which will be broadcasting a live two-hour programme.

European broadcasters taking live coverage include ITV, TV3 (Ireland), National Sports Channel (Russia), Equidia Racing (France), Unire (Italy), TV Maritim Norge AS (Scandinavia) and TVP (Poland).

Live coverage will also be provided by broadcasters from further afield, including Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (Canada), SuperSport (South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa), Tellytrack (South Africa), Racing.com and Sky Racing Thoroughbred Channel (Australia), NZ Trackside (New Zealand), SportsMax (Caribbean) and Eleven Sports (Singapore).

The MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region will be served by live pictures from Dubai Racing Channel while Yas TV will also be broadcasting a dedicated Derby programme in Abu Dhabi.

Delayed coverage will be widely available to news outlets across the world via the sports news video agency, SNTV, while Trans World Sport, the leading global sports magazine programme, affords the fixture added exposure. CNN is covering the race for its World Sport and Winning Post programmes, while Sina Sports will also be promoting the raceday in China.