Admire Deus

Mitsuru Hashida, trainer
“In the Hanshin Daishoten last out, things got tight in the stretch and that was the end of it. He has a big stride so if he has to put the brakes on, he can’t accelerate easily again. He needed a smoother trip. We gave him some 10 days off after that and his movement still was lacking on April 13, so we gave him a fast gallop on April 21 and that improved him quite a bit. He’s lean and well-muscled and he’s on his game. We raced him over 3,000 meters last time because we were aiming him for the Tenno Sho Spring. From the looks of it, he’ll have no problem over 3,200 meters. Last year he drew the far outside gate and this year it’s a full gate, so I’m hoping not to get drawn too far out.”

Albert

Atsunori Hashimoto, assistant trainer
“In the Nikkei Sho I can only say that I had the impression that the winner was very good. This horse kept his eye on the others well but at the crucial moment his response was dull. I’d say that was likely due to him coming off a layoff. In the stretch, though, I’d say he was nearly the same as the top two finishers. We kept him at the training center after that and everything has gone according to plan. I think he’ll be sharper this time and we can aim for better than third place. Still, he’s not able to switch easily into high gear from a slow pace, so I’m hoping the race will be one that demands stamina.”

Cheval Grand

Yasuo Tomomichi, trainer
“The Hanshin Daishoten was his first trip over 3,000 meters, but he’s not the type of horse where you have to worry about him running unbalanced, so I thought he’d do well. And he did, he was well in hand the entire trip. Coming into the stretch, he quickened at the final turn as planned. It was the kind of race that made the future look all that much brighter. If we give him time off, he gets heavy very easily, so we kept him at Ritto the whole time. He has never been one to move too well over the woodchips and his workout on April 13 was rather lackluster. His time for his workout on April 20 wasn’t great either. But, we can now push him quite hard and his breathing remains good. This week, (jockey) Yuichi Fukunaga will fine tune him. The distance this time doesn’t worry me. Key will be the 58 kg he’ll have to carry. He’s well built and his muscling has improved, so I think now he’ll be able to handle it.”

Yuicihi Fukunaga, jockey
“In fast work this week, I chased the lead horse. I was instructed to get a feel for how much to push him and push him in the finish. I did and I had him accelerate over the last furlong. The overall time was different this week but the time over the final 3 furlongs were the same. Last week they pushed him harder but this week, being race week, I held back so as to not tire him. He’s never been great in work or gotten good t imes, but this week was the best fast work I’ve ever done on him.”

Curren Mirotic

Osamu Hirata, trainer
“He’s better racing from a handy position, but even though he didn’t break that quickly, the jockey took him to the front in the Hanshin Daishoten, And he may have been a bit heavy still. So I’ll attribute his performance (sixth place) to those two things. We gave him a bit of time off and, with this race as our target, worked him in tandem on the woodchip course on April 20. He clocked 12.1 seconds over the last furlong, which is good for him. This time of year, he’s eating very well and I don’t feel his age at all. He’s suited to racing from a good position and making his move early. I think if he can run as he did last year it’ll be good.”

Fame Game

Yoshitada Munakata, trainer
“The going was really bad for the Diamond Stakes, but he still ran well. He was racing under more than the winner so I’d have to say that the winner was even better over bad ground. We sent him to the farm after that and he came back leaner than last time and he’d apparently gotten ample work. His workout on April 20 didn’t look that good but after he passed the finish line he accelerated well and that’s characteristic of him. Jockey Kyosuke Maruta said, ‘He felt the best to me yet.’ When he wants to run, he does and last year he accelerated at the very end. And because he’s difficult like that, I’m hoping the ground won’t be that fast.”

Jun Sato, assistant trainer
“Compared to his best times, I think he came up short in his last race. But, the ground was quite bad. He had a bit of time off after that to get him refreshed and I think he’ll go into this race in a better frame of mind than he was for last race. Last week, the hill course was too sloppy, so we galloped him on the woodchip course over the flat. Things looked good. He’s bad in the gate and we’ve avoided taking him to the track on raceday in order that he’d be a bit calmer. Yes, he’s older but we just won’t know how he’ll do until we give it a go.”

Gold Actor

Toshiaki Sasajima, assistant trainer
“For the Nikkei Sho he still had room for improvement as we were readying him for here. We were more interested in the kind of race he would ran, not just in winning or losing. But, he trounced the competition, and did it carrying 58 kg. It was a stunning race. He used about 70-80 percent of what he had and so he was a bit tired coming out of that race. But, we’ve been able to train him as planned. On April 20, (jockey) Hayato Yoshida rode him in fast work for 6 furlongs in tandem with another. And it being a week out, he pushed him pretty hard. This week, however, with the trip to Kyoto ahead of us, just giving him light work was enough. We’ve given him time to mature over a long span of time and the result is that he’s solidly built. I have no special wishes for the race, just that I want him to show the great potential he has always possessed. My hopes are high.”

Kitasan Black

Hisashi Shimizu, trainer
“This horse can race from any position and I always leave that decision up to the jockey. In the Osaka Hai, he was able to lead at a good pace but he was marked by the eventual winner from the first turn. He lost, but it was a good race. It’d been a while since his last race but he beat the top-level horses in the field, so I think it was a strong race. Last week, we put a horse in front of him and had them line up at the finish. His time was what we’d wanted it to be and it was a good workout. His weight dropped after the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger) but this last race was only 2,000 meters so he came out of it well and he’s doing good. He can take the lead or hold back. The 3,200 meters is no problem; it’ll just be the competition and how he handles it.”

Meiner Medalist

Kiyotaka Tanaka, trainer 　
“He’s more difficult now, not as forward and eager to run compared to when he was young so we’ve put him in blinkers. I think he’s suited to about 3,000 meters. He was in a slump there for a while but he’s been running well lately. He’s able to keep his mind on things longer now. He did two laps up the hill course on April 20, looked good and was on his toes. The lineup is quite a strong one and I can’t make any claims but if he can show us his tenacity, I’d like to aim for a bit better finish than he’s had recently.”

Nobuyuki Tashiro, assistant trainer
“The pace of the Chunichi Shimbun Hai was very slow, but he broke well and was able to get a good position and travel well. The jockey’s call was an excellent one. After that race we gave him some time off at Northern Farm Shigaraki and then brought him along according to our usual schedule. He worked in tandem on April 20 over the woodchips. His time was average but that is sufficient. One more fast gallop should have him up to snuff. His running was stable even with the jump up to the open class and he’s gotten good results racing to the right. I think he’s at his peak and though there is some concern as to how he’ll take to 3,200 meters, he does settle well.”

Reve Mistral

Tomokazu Takano, trainer
“After the Kyoto Kinen, he left the training center and returned with the Tenno Sho Spring as our goal. We’ve ridden him on the hill course, the flat and in the trotting ring and he’s shown improvement with every workout. There was a case where he got cast in his stall and had some pain after that so we gave him the day off on April 14 but he was back working the next day. And he galloped the day after that and worked up the hill later too. We clocked him and I decided that he was good to go and I nominated him for the race. Last week the jockey rode work and pushed him hard. I think if he can get a good handle on the pace, he’ll have a chance.”

Satono Noblesse

Hiroshi Kanetake, assistant trainer
“In the Chunichi Shimbun Hai, the jockey did a great job of keeping him patient and holding back. He was carrying 3 kg more than the other top finishers, so I’d say he was definitely a cut above. We gave him some time off at Northern Farm Shigaraki and let him have a breather. He came back to the training center on April 5 and he’s gotten leaner with each fast gallop and his weight is down from the 530 kg range that he was. He galloped sharply on April 21 over the woodchip course with the jockey checking his responses. He looked on his toes and moved well. I think maybe 3,200 meters is a tad long for him, but he did run second in the Kikuka Sho, and at Kyoto, you really have to run the race to see how it will all pan out.”

Sounds of Earth (Yello cap)

Kenichi Fujioka, trainer
“Despite having the weight advantage in the Nikkei Sho, he still was beaten. He didn’t lose as much weight as I thought he would from the trip to the track, so he may have been a bit heavy still. He’s not as frail as he used to be and so his last race didn’t take much out of him. Everything has gone well. Still, for last week’s fast work, I wanted to push him at length but his overall time was slower than expected. He’s nice and lean and his movement isn’t bad so I don’t think it’ll have any negative effect. This time he’s back at a venue he’s well-suited to and the extra distance will be a plus. I think he’ll have improved enough to be able to turn the tables on last race’s result. Mirco Demuro was supposed to ride but with his suspension, I’ve asked Yusuke Fujioka. He has ridden him before and has a good handle on the horse as well. My expectations are high.”

Yusuke Fujioka, jockey
“He felt really great in work this week. I was instructed to push him hard so he wouldn’t lose focus. Last week the overall time was a bit slow so this week we focused on the finish. It was a good fast gallop and I don’t think there’s anything lacking. His responses were good.”

Sakae Kunieda, trainer
“Even though he was coming off a layoff, he’d been ready for the Diamond Stakes. But the going was bad and he wasn’t able to give it all he has. The trip to the track took more out of him than I thought it would for that race, but last time out he handled it better. He traveled well and was able to run his race. He has a big stride so he can’t get up to speed as quickly and I think that made the difference between him and the winner. We didn’t give him time off but have kept him in work and things have gone well. He was always a horse I thought would only come into his own with age and I still think he has room for improvement. I would have liked to have drawn a bit more to the inside. I’ve wished that he would have one more gear to switch into at the finish and I’ve worked on that and I think he’s improved. I still wish he was a bit stronger overall and give it more in the end.”

Toho Jackal

Kiyoshi Tani, trainer
“I’d wanted to race him once before the Tenno Sho Spring since I had some concerns after the layoff. I didn’t have him in top shape either for the Hanshin Daishoten and so he didn’t overdo it in the stretch. He came out of that race with no worries about his legs and he has gotten regular work since and handled all the fast work we’ve given him. Last week in fast work, I would have liked if the horse he followed was a little faster, but he did give a good solid response in the finish and his breathing was good. Considering the going, I don’t think his time was bad. And the jockey said he had a better impression of him than the last time he’d seen him run fast work. I’ve aimed him here ever since he won the Kikuka Sho. His last race will have surely sharpened him up.”

Tosen Reve

Yasutoshi Ikee, trainer
“I raced him in the Arima Kinen (The Grand Prix) and he’d had a hard schedule, which I think had its repercussions in his last race. He’s 8 years old and he has some pelvic problems and had some atrial fibrillation, so I didn’t want to race him much. But, he’s still young and on his toes. The jockey rode him in trackwork but his movement still seemed lacking. I’m hoping this week’s workout can get him up to par. If he’d had a bit more time between races, (jockey Hugh) Bowman (who rode him in the Arima Kinen) said he thought he could have won the Arima – that’s how much he thought of him. He’s a lot more settled now and I think he’ll be able to handle the 3,200 meters.”

Twinkle

Kazuya Makita, trainer
“He moved early in the Diamond Stakes and split the ranks. It was a strong race and he showed us that he can handle a long haul to the track and bad going. After that race, I aimed him for this one and this one alone. Everything has gone well since he’s returned to the training center and he worked solidly in tandem on the woodchip course on April 20. We pushed him hard and the jockey got a good handle on him. It’s Kyoto this time but even if the ground is fast, it’ll be OK. Of course, if it rains and the ground is slower like last time, that too, will be good. It’s a strong lineup but this horse has gotten much stronger since he returned to the training center. If he moves early like he did last race and digs down and brings out his tenacity, I think he has a chance.”

Mikio Matsunaga, trainer
“He had the far outside gate in the Fukushima Mimpo Hai but he moved smartly to the inside. It was by no means a bad race but he fared worse than I thought he would over the long trip to the track and that surely had an effect. We’ve gotten him back up to weight and, for having been raced regularly, he’s really full of vigor. There hasn’t been much time between races so we’ve just breezed him up the hill. He isn’t bothered by distance. The longer the race, the better. I have no concerns about 3,200 meters. He’s breaking better now too and I’m looking forward to seeing how well he can do if he can run his own race.”