Janus ($125.000 Purse)
GP- For Three Year Olds and Upward
Five Furlongs on the Turf
December 20, 2025
Last month, Operation Mongoose took on some of the best in the BC Mile, but he has also been a very good sprinter as evidenced by his victory in the Grade 2 Nearctic in October. In the Janus, he would take care of business while going five furlongs, catching massive longshot Superbush just in time. The six-year-old gelding is trained by Maxmillion Farm, who wins the Janus for the second straight year. M J Husbands was aboard for his first such win. Congratulations to them! The time of the win was :56.08, matching the second fastest time in the stake’s history. Let’s take a look at it:
(1/4 Mile- :22.14)- Our pre-race pick to win, Last Way To The Beac gets out to the lead early for Maxmillion Farm but right beside him his 103/1 longshot Superbush for Acber Farms. Running in the third and fourth lanes, and about a length back, we have the reigning BC Turf Sprint winner, Brit Style, for Lemax Farms, and Black N Gold Stable’s Sweeping Star. Right behind this foursome, we have another quartet of horses, and it’s Moment Of True M having a neck in front of the others for Jireh. On the rail, our eventual winner from Maxmillion Farm, Operation Mongoose is sixth while TwinTowersRacing’s Cinnamon Caviar runs between horses. Neon Delite takes the outside lane here for Temulac Farm. It’s about a length and a half from them to the two trailers, Teterboro (Chili King Stables) and Wild Sprinter (Nakamura Stables).
(Top of Stretch, 1.5F To Go)- The field rounds the turn and enters the stretch with supporters of Superbush starting to get a little excited as he begins to prevail over Last Way To The Beac while both Brit Style and Sweeping Star are now a full length back partially due to having to take the long way around the turn. Operation Mongoose is now fifth, keeping pace to the top two with room on the rail if M J Husbands wished to take advantage of it. Neon Delite is holding steady with him, but his cause is not helped by running at least five wide in the turn. Moment Of True M and Cinnamon Caviar were lacking response, while Teterboro looked for a lane to take in the stretch. Wild Sprinter is at the back with limited time to live up to his name.
(Finish- :56.08)- Into the stretch, Superbush looked to take this home, looking very comfortable here in his turf debut. Behind him, M J Husbands appeared indecisive about taking the obvious lane along the rail with Operation Mongoose but eventually would as they got closer to the wire. With Superbush trying to hang on and provide a massive payout to his supporters, Operation Mongoose stayed with it, closed in, and drew even with the longshot to force a photo finish. Once checked, it would reveal that he got up just time, grabbing the big win. Superbush still creates nice payouts with his second-place finish, with Neon Delite’s wide run throughout getting him third, narrowly over Brit Style, Teterboro, and Last Way To The Beac. Rounding it out, it’s Moment Of True M, Sweeping Star, Cinnamon Caviar, and Wild Sprinter.
About The Winner- Operation Mongoose, trained by Maxmillion Farm and ridden to victory by M J Husbands, is a six-year-old gelding by Illusions and is out of the late Elizabeth Taylor. He was bred in Florida by Patterson Stables as a first quarter two-year-old and was acquired by Maxmillion Farm for $75.000 in a private sale this April from Acber Farms, who incidentally is the trainer of Superbush. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his thirteenth in 32 starts and his third stake win. His career earnings are now $528.050.
— NS
Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded