The long wait is over for JoJo fans. After the single-episode premiere of Steel Ball Run in March, Netflix has confirmed that the 2nd and 3rd STAGES will finally begin streaming worldwide on Friday, September 25, 2026. This new batch includes 11 episodes in total, and a fresh episode will arrive every Friday on Netflix. The story picks up right where the first stage ended, pushing Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli into the deadly Arizona desert and deeper into a supernatural conspiracy that goes far beyond a horse race.
Exact Streaming Times for Every Major Region
The global release time is locked to 1:00 a.m. PDT and 5:00 p.m. JST. Because Netflix drops episodes at the same moment everywhere, the local clock time changes depending on where you live. Below are the exact times for the most popular locations, grouped by matching time zones.
Same Time Zone Groupings (First Episode on September 25, 2026):
- USA (West Coast) / Canada (Vancouver): September 25 at 1:00 a.m. PDT (Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle).
- USA (East Coast) / Canada (Toronto, Montreal): September 25 at 4:00 a.m. EDT (New York, Washington D.C., Miami).
- UK / Portugal / Ghana / Ireland: September 25 at 9:00 a.m. BST (London, Dublin, Lisbon, Accra).
- Central Europe / Spain / Italy / Poland / Germany / France: September 25 at 10:00 a.m. CEST (Berlin, Madrid, Rome, Warsaw, Paris).
- Japan / South Korea: September 25 at 5:00 p.m. JST / 5:00 p.m. KST (Tokyo, Seoul).
- Australia (Sydney / Melbourne): September 26 at 6:00 p.m. AEST.
- Brazil / Argentina (São Paulo / Buenos Aires): September 25 at 5:00 a.m. BRT / 5:00 a.m. ART.
- Mexico / Colombia (Mexico City / Bogotá): September 25 at 2:00 a.m. CST / 3:00 a.m. COT.
The streaming platform is Netflix worldwide. The series is available with both Japanese and English audio tracks, and subtitles are available in all major languages. Viewers in countries like India, Germany, France, the UK, Australia, Canada, and the USA can all watch the episode at the same universal moment, just at different local times.
What Happens in This Episode and How It Changes the Story
The 2nd STAGE throws Johnny and Gyro into the Arizona desert, a brutal 1,200-kilometer stretch that immediately forces the racers into a dangerous shortcut. Gyro chooses to bypass the first water source, and Johnny has no choice but to follow him. Their decision puts them in the path of another racer, Mrs. Robinson, who attacks the duo using explosive cacti.
The biggest story shift, however, is not the race itself. The 2nd STAGE reveals that the entire Steel Ball Run competition is a cover for a secret search. The $50 million prize is a distraction. The real goal is to collect the nine scattered body parts of a holy corpse, and whoever assembles them gains immense power. Johnny Joestar discovers that the mummified left hand of this corpse is embedded in his own body. The race organizer, Steven Steel, and the U.S. President Funny Valentine are using the race as a retrieval mission. Every attack on Johnny and Gyro is tied to the search for the corpse fragments.
This episode marks the moment the series stops being a simple horse race story. It becomes a supernatural Western about corruption, faith, and a race for something far more dangerous than money. Johnny’s Stand ability, Tusk, begins to awaken during this stage, and the story’s central mystery takes shape.
Detailed Recap of the Previous Episode
The 1st STAGE premiered on March 19, 2026, as a 47-minute special episode on Netflix. It introduced Johnny Joestar, a former genius jockey who is now paralyzed from the waist down after a petty fight ruined his life. Johnny encounters Gyro Zeppeli, an outlaw from Italy who uses a mysterious technique called the Spin through steel balls.
Gyro challenges a thief to a duel and makes the man shoot himself using a steel ball. Johnny, watching from his wheelchair, touches the spinning ball and briefly stands up. That miracle gives Johnny hope. He buys a horse and enters the Steel Ball Run, a cross-country race from San Diego to New York City with a $50 million grand prize.
The episode ends with the first stage of the race. Gyro wins the opening stage, but the victory brings new challenges and introduces several rival racers, including Pocoloco and Diego Brando. The premiere was praised for its animation and storytelling, but it was heavily criticized for releasing only one episode and then going silent for months.
Unique Facts You Probably Did Not Know
The Steel Ball Run race started on September 25, 1890, the same calendar date as the anime’s 2nd STAGE premiere in 2026. This deliberate date alignment is a small detail that connects the real release to the story’s timeline.
Over 3,000 people entered the race in the original story, but only 30 finished. About 90 participants died during the race. The first-place prize was $1 million, with smaller prizes for the top five finishers.
The creator, Hirohiko Araki, took three separate research trips to the United States to study the landscapes, horses, and historical details for the manga. The character of President Funny Valentine was partly inspired by Araki watching the film Independence Day, and by his growing interest in the idea that good and evil are not always easily separated.
Tomokazu Sugita, who voices Funny Valentine in the Japanese version, previously voiced Joseph Joestar in the earlier JoJo anime seasons. The new opening theme, titled “SPIN,” is performed by the rock band Kroi.
Related:
When to Expect the Full 11-Episode Run to End
The 2nd and 3rd STAGES together cover 11 episodes, releasing weekly every Friday on Netflix starting September 25, 2026. With no planned breaks, the final episode of this batch is expected to arrive around December 4, 2026. The anime adapts the 2nd and 3rd STAGES from the manga, bringing the story up to around Chapter 32.
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