Hiroyuki Nagahama, trainer
“Last out, he was racing in a forward position without cover and though he was keen, considering it was his first race of the autumn, I don’t think it was bad at all. He didn’t have that much left in the finish, but if things had gone a bit smoother for him I think the margin would have been smaller. We gave him fast gallops on Oct. 14 and Oct. 20 and his movement was good. We pushed him hard on Thursday too. He’s running much more balanced now and his last race has sharpened him up. There are horses in the lineup with some great late speed, so it’s not going to be easy by any means. But, if he can travel well, I’m hoping he can get close to the top finishers, even just a little.”

Air Spinel

Kazuhide Sasaki, trainer
“He traveled further back in the Kobe Shimbun Hai than he normally does. He had the same final 3-furlong time as Red Eldest did but the Hanshin track at the time favored the early speed and he couldn’t catch them. He was nicely in hand from the start and I think it was a good rehearsal for the main event. Finishing in fifth isn’t anything to get too concerned about. He came out of that race just fine and is full of energy. He can always get good times in work, so we didn’t push him last week. Still, his time was good. He runs with his center of balance nice and low and I think the way he moves will suit the distance. I think he’ll head to the gate in great shape. From his last race, I could see that he has matured mentally. After that, we’ll just see how close to the top he can get.”

Yuji Wada, trainer
“After breaking his maiden in the spring, we gave him some time off. He has come back with a solid core and looks very stable when he runs. He had a good distance-saving run last time out and showed us some nice speed in the stretch. He doesn’t get keen, he’s easy to ride and the extra distance is very much welcome. He has a good late kick so the draw doesn’t matter.”

Dee Majesty

Akio Shimada, groom
“In the Asahi Hai St. Lite Kinen, horses moved over on him on two different occasions right after the start. It wasn’t a problem because we had planned to race from the back though. Since he was being marked though, he made his move early and the race ended without mishap. There was quite a lot of time between that race and this one and he’s quite laidback now. He’s much more solid now too. On Oct. 13 and again this Wednesday we had the jockey ride him in fast work. And we plan to move to Kyoto early Friday morning. We’ll see how he’s doing and then decide on what sort of work we’ll give him for Saturday. He’s got the body of Brian’s Time, the heart and lungs of Sadler’s Wells and the sharpness of Deep Impact. He’s gotten that from his sire’s side and his dam’s, I think. The jockey and the horse are even better in tune now and I have no concerns whatsoever. He’ll put up an excellent fight.”

Ippo Sameshima, trainer
“He was able to get a nice inside run in the Kobe Shimbun Hai and in the stretch he looked like he was going to quicken nicely but the horses on his outside quickened more. I think it was a difference in sharpness and coming off a layoff as he was likely meant he still wasn’t totally up to snuff. His work on Oct. 10 was intentionally slow, then on Oct. 13 we pushed him hard over 7 furlongs. He had fast gallops on Oct. 16 and 19 too. I think he’s showing improvement. He had some soreness in the spring and we couldn’t push him too hard but now we can. He settles well and he has stamina. I think he’ll be able to handle 3,000 meters well enough. He travels nicely and can adapt well to however the race unfolds, which is his strong point.”

Naosuke Sugai, trainer
“He was in good shape for the Kobe Shimbun Hai but he freaked out that day in the tunnel leading to the track, so there are still some psychological issues with him. Still, he showed us some nice footwork in the finish and he does have ability. He’s done well after that and, just like before his last start, he never has any problems mentally when he’s at the training center. The jockey rode him in the morning on Oct. 13 and Oct. 20 and he gave us nice solid workouts over 7 furlongs. I think he’ll show improvement over last race. He’ll be able to handle the distance but key will be what kind of state of mind he’s in on raceday. I’m planning to do what I can to bring out his best and I’m hoping they’ll work for us.”

Jun Vulcan

Yasuo Tomomichi, trainer
“We’d given him a lot of work with the Kobe Shimbun Hai as our target, but just a week before that race he injured his haunches on both sides. We gave him some time off but the wounds were deep and so we passed on that race just to be careful. Things have gone well since and there are no problems now. We gave him a workout in tandem on Oct. 13 and had him catch and pass the other horse. We pushed him hard as he still had time to the race. This week too he worked in tandem on the flat and the jockey was up. It’s his first G1 and he has had a lot of work and is in quite good shape, so I think he’ll be able to give it his all. He settles well so I think he’ll be well-suited to the long distance. He’s up against some of the best but his competition up until now has been pretty strong. The distance is attractive. I think he’ll rally to the level of the competition.”

Yoshito Yahagi, trainer
“He didn’t have a smooth run in the Kobe Shimbun Hai. He started well but then fell back and from there it was kind of muddled. He didn’t really race so he wasn’t tired at all after that, but since he did move up the ranks in the stretch, I think we’ll see improvement this time. He settles nicely and he has sufficient stamina, so the extra distance should be a plus. Usually he gets a little sluggish coming out of the backstretch, but at Kyoto it’s a downhill slope. If we have him move out early I think he’ll be able to run well through the final stages. We can use that slope to our advantage. And the jockey got a good image of how things should unfold, so I’m looking forward to it.”

Mikki Rocket

Hidetaka Otonashi, trainer
“I’d been worried about the start for the Kobe Shimbun Hai but he drew wide and was loaded late, so the timing seems to have worked in his favor and he broke well. He traveled well and needed just a little more but the winning horse reached down and gave it his little more. We gave him a rest after the Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) in the spring, then had about a month off following his three starts in Hokkaido. He worked solo on Oct. 1, then went to the Kobe Shimbun Hai and I think that he should be showing some improvement this time out. You can say it about the others as well but he’s untested at 3,000 meters. I think the pace will likely be slow and the key will be how well he travels at whatever position he’s in. That is my foremost concern.”

Daishi Ito, trainer
“His race at Sapporo two starts ago was lacking something so we gave him a bit of a breather and decided to move our sights to a 2,000-meter race at Nakayama and we decided on the Narashino Tokubetsu. But he was very agitated on the day and had lost weight as well. He usually feels good going into the stretch but this time he wouldn’t quicken as much as he usually does. He did win, but it wasn’t his best. His weight is back up and he has calmed down. He definitely is in better shape than before. The Satsuki Sho was a good experience for him and I had the impression that his run in the Radio Nikkei Sho was better than what his finishing order would indicate. So, if the Kikuka Sho stands him well, I think we can expect progress from him in the future.”

Mount Robson

Atsunori Hashimoto, assistant trainer
“In the Asahi Hai St. Lite Kinen, a horse moved in on him just out of the gate and he took hold of the bit and was pretty keen until into the backstretch. His responses were also poor and it was a typical bad example of a first race after a layoff. He came out of the race well with no fatigue and he has improved. He apparently hadn’t had enough work before his last race. Two weeks ago, he was 492 kg and his last race will definitely have done him good, so we’re expecting quite a bit of improvement. He loses concentration easily at times. Sometimes he’s keen to run; other times he doesn’t want to run at all. He still is quite immature. I can’t say anything about the distance, but I think from looking at his bloodline that he’ll be able to handle it. Important thing will be getting control of his bad points.”

Prodigal Son

Sakae Kunieda, trainer
“He was returning from a layoff in the Asahi Hai St. Lite Kinen, but he’d had a lot of work and his movement was good. Over the summer he’d matured and I had been looking forward to the race. He raced in a forward position in the Japanese Derby but jockey Hironobu Tanabe, who was on him for the second time and thinking of the Kikuka Sho, considered getting him to settle well was more important than getting a good position. He focused on that and I think he did a good job of getting in tune with the horse. But in the first half of the race, the eventual winner had this horse in his sights and it made for a tough race. He got pushed outside in the stretch and it was rather frustrating. He came out of the race well though and we’ve been able to work him according to schedule. He trained in tandem on Oct. 13 and worked well together with the other horse, but this one definitely felt like he had a lot more in reserve. Tanabe rode him in fast work this week. The competition will be stronger and last race the distance did seem a bit much for him. I do think that this horse’s best is yet to come. If he does well here, the future should look brighter.”

Rainbow Line

Keiichi Asami, assistant
“He really ran well last out, in among top-level older horses and then with barely a difference between him and Maurice. He hadn’t seemed to have changed much since the spring, but I guess his last race showed that he has indeed matured. After a bit of time off, he came back to the training center on Oct. 4. On Oct. 10, in work with another horse, he moved better than I had expected him to and, with the work over the weekend, we should have him up to snuff. This week we just breezed him. He had quite a few starts in the spring and he really tried hard. Looking at the Japanese Derby, I’d say that if he can travel well, he should be able to handle the extra distance. I think the experience he gained racing against older horses in his last race will stand him well.”

Red Eldest

Kazuhide Sasada, trainer
““He was coming off a layoff for the Kobe Shimbun Hai but his third-place finish was a good performance. He showed us once again what a good colt he is. And I think the jockey was able to get a good handle on him. The colt came out of his last race well and I’ve been able to get him ready according to plan. We had him do a hard workout up the hill course last week, breezed him over the weekend and worked him hard this week again. I think his last race will have an effect and it’ll be up to us to see how much we can help him improve. He is great in the homestretch and the more distance he gets the better, so I think 3,000 meters will surely suit him. He’s not fully mature yet so the firm track of Kyoto should be better for him than Hanshin. He is still coming into his own but he has matured more both physically and mentally from the spring.”

Satono Diamond

Yasutoshi Ikee, trainer
““The Kobe Shimbun Hai was his first outing in a while and he was a bit keen and also didn’t show his best in the finish either. Still, he won, so that’s the important thing. The second-place finisher gave him a run for his money, but I was never worried he would catch him. Even with the final drive, he wasn’t out of breath and it was by no means a difficult race for him. He recovered right away and all has gone well since. Last week, we focused on the final furlong in his work and his movement was good. I think he’ll show quite a bit of improvement over last race. I’ll have to say that the distance is the biggest concern. It’s by no means his best distance but we’ll just have to see how it goes. I really want him to win one of the classics and, if the jockey can get him a nice trip, I’m hoping he can do it.”

Norihiko Kishimoto, assistant trainer
“The blinkers have worked well and he’s able to concentrate more and more. He never looks good in morning work though. But he has a much better air about him now than he did in the spring. Riding him, he feels much better too. He’s the type that does better with more distance. The more the better. I’m not sure how he’ll do on the Kyoto turf. I’m thinking some rain and a yielding track would be good.”

Super Lumiere

Yuya Tsuchida, assistant trainer
“We kept him at Ritto Training Center after his last race because he does lose weight over a long haul. He was tired after the last race but looking at his hill work on Oct. 10, I’d say he has recovered. He’s back in shape, even so much that he was a bit too filled out and we had to take care of that. The jockey rode him on Oct. 19 and we breezed him this week. Because he didn’t have enough wins, we couldn’t race in the classics in the spring, but I’ve always felt he had a lot of ability. His last race, too, didn’t show everything he’s got. He got results, but we had kept room for improvement with this race in mind. He’s on the up and up, and I think he’s versatile enough to handle the extra distance.”

Umbruch

Atsunori Hashimoto, assistant
“The Sapporo Nikkan Sports Hai was a really good race. He didn’t lose concentration and his responses were excellent. He is more powerful now. But the one thing I didn’t like was that his weight was down. His weight is back up now and I think he’ll show a plus in weight on raceday. He travels well now and I think that shows that he’s starting to come into his own. In the last start, a number of factors may have helped him. The track was yielding and the final 3-furlong time was slow. He’s not a type that can go all out in the finish for the win and I am a little concerned because I don’t think the competition in his last race was all that strong.”