The extravagance of one of the most prestigious Triple Crown events, the Kentucky Derby, is now just eight days away. With the Grade I Stakes race taking the International spotlight, Churchill Downs equestrian arena is all set for its 149th run. While the annual event is already making the headlines, the arrival of the JPN-bred colt, Mandarin hero, caused a stir in the equestrian fraternity.

Foaled in March 2020 in Japan, the three-year-old dark bay, Mandarin hero has girded up its lions to clinch this year’s Kentucky Derby trophy. Now, as the brown colt arrives at Churchill Downs field, netizens went gaga over the grand entry of the JPN-bred and compared Colt’s persona to Juggernaut from Deadpool.

The grand entry of Mandarin Hero leaves the social media cult astounded

Recently, the official Instagram handle of the Kentucky Derby shared the video of Mandarin Hero’s arrival at the Churchill Downs racetrack. In the reel, the three-year-old Colt can be seen donning the red blinker while making his way out of the trailer. Captioning the post, the Kentucky Derby’s account penned, “Mandarin Hero (JPN) has arrived at @churchilldowns”. Following this, fans herded to the comment section to express their elation at the Japanese colt’s entry. 

One compared the Mandarin Hero’s red blinder with Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool outfit and wrote, “Getting some string Deadpool vibes”. Others commented…

“Now that is how you make an entrance!!!!”

“He’s gorgeous”

“JPN Horses are on right now”

“Wow!!! What a Beauty”

Mentions like, “Gettin ready for the big day”, “so beautiful”, “I’m so ready for this”, “this horses are so beautiful”, and “Wow if he can run as good as he looks. He maybe 1 to watch” brimmed the comment section.

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One even mentioned Mandarin Hero’s livestock breeders: Shanghai Bobby (foaled in 2010), and Namura Nadeshiko (foaled in 2009), and penned, “Shanghai Bobby’s colt is here!”. Another wrote, “A beautiful son of Shanghai Bobby w/ the great Sunday Silence in his pedigree through his dam. I love this horse!”. While the equestrian community is elated with Mandarin Horse’s arrival on the ranch, what do you think are the odds for the Japanese bred to make it to the finals of the Kentucky Derby? Give us your perspective in the comment section below.

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