Admire Hadar

Ryuji Okubo, trainer
“He’s been moving well and his times are good, as the jockey has confirmed. The horse gets into a race well and his control is good, so I’m not worried about the distance. He’s a lot tighter now and I don’t think he’ll let himself down in a Grade 1. Tokyo will be better than Nakayama for him. He showed a good turn of foot in the Wakaba Stakes, and I’d like the ground to be good for him this time.”

Hiroyasu Tanaka, trainer
“Even though he hasn’t run over 2,400 meters or against such strong horses, he has run at Chukyo, which I consider a fairly tough track like Tokyo. Hopefully with the help of the jockey, he’ll get into a good rhythm in the race, and that will be one of the key points.”

Toshikiko Hokari, assistant trainer
“Judging by his run in the Principal Stakes, he’ll have no trouble with an extra 400 meters. It’ll be interesting to see how he gets on if he gives it his best here.”

Takuya Ono, jockey
“I just checked things with him in his last piece of work. I haven’t ridden him in a race before, but I’m not anxious about anything.”

Bathrat Leon

Shigeki Miyauchi, assistant trainer
“He’s had his usual training pattern at the stable, including work uphill. He’s improved a lot mentally. The 2,400 meters might be a bit long for him, but with his results over 1,800 meters at Sapporo, it shouldn’t pose too much of a problem. If things go quickly from the start of the race, he might go forward early. However things turn out, hopefully he’ll do his best.”

Yusuke Fujioka, jockey
“He’s responded well in his work. He’s relaxed and in good condition. While we don’t know about the distance, his ability should see him able to adjust to things.”

Deep Monster

Yasutoshi Ikee, trainer
“He’s moved well in training in this final week before the race. He didn’t run in the Kyoto Shimbun Hai, but he’s in the same condition as he was in for his last race.”

Yuki Iwasaki, assistant trainer
“He’s worked well under his race jockey Yutaka Take, and things have been fine. The horse is filling out more and he looks good. He’s not necessarily the type to take things on himself in a race, so the long straight at Tokyo should give him time to get wound up. The distance of 2,400 meters won’t be a problem.”

Yutaka Take, jockey
“He trained well last week, and this week also he’s been running smoothly, just stretching out at the finish. When I rode him last year, I thought he could become a horse to run in a Classic race, and he’s come on gradually to where he is now. He’ll be suited by the long Tokyo straight.”

Efforia

Yuichi Shikato, trainer
“On his return to the stable, he was plus 10 kg. He’s developed a lot more muscle, and certainly looks to have a lot of power now. He showed his fighting spirit in his last piece of work. On his breeding, as well as the way he’s been running in his races, I don’t see any problem with the extra distance this time. With his big strides, the wider Tokyo track will suit him too. I really want him to run his best race again here.”

Takeshi Yokoyama, jockey
“He hasn’t dropped his condition since the Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) and he’s in good shape. He seems to have become stronger. In his last work, he finished off very well and kept things going until after the winning post, demonstrating his ability. It would be great if I could win the Derby with him.”

Gratias

Yukihiro Kato, trainer
“He’s trained well, and looks good under his race jockey (Kohei Matsuyama). Given the horse’s stamina, there shouldn’t be any worries about the distance, and I think he’ll handle the curves of the Tokyo track fine. I’d like him to have a good ground-saving run, putting his footwork to best use.”

Great Magician

Keisuke Miyata, trainer
“He’s come on a lot and the jockey feels good about him. In his last race, he knew when to take the bit and ran smoothly, managing the two corners well, showing that he can do this better now. He has a nice light action. On breeding, the extra distance should suit him, so too the Tokyo track. It’s great to have a Derby runner so soon after opening the stable. He should run a big race given his improved condition.”

Lagom

Ichiro Fujita, assistant trainer
“The jockey (Suguru Hamanaka) has come to know the horse well, and he’s moving a lot better now. He’s had experience at Tokyo and the transport over to the track. I think he’ll be fine over the 2,400 meters.”

Suguru Hamanaka, jockey
“He’s improved since last week when it comes to racing smoothly and finding a good rhythm. There’s a slight stubborn side to him, so I’ll need just to have him under control.”

Red Genesis

Yasuo Tomomichi, trainer
“He’s managed to keep his condition pretty well and hopefully that will be the case going into the race. Three starts ago at Tokyo, he got into a good position, but just showed a bit of inexperience at the finish. I’m not worried about the going, and if he gets into a good natural rhythm, he should be able to perform well, even over the 2,400 meters.”

Satono Reinas

Sakae Kunieda, trainer
“There’s been plenty of time since the Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas), so her condition has a fresh feel about it. We made sure that in her last trackwork this week, we didn’t overdo things with her. I think she’ll actually be better suited to this longer trip. I’m excited about the challenge she faces here, and I’m not really thinking about the opponents in the race, but only her performance under these conditions.”

Christophe Lemaire, jockey
“She’s a horse that hasn’t reached her full potential, and while she might not have quite enough speed over a mile, 2,400 meters will be good. She has a lot of ability, and she gets the 2kg allowance here. I was just thinking to keep her in best condition during work this week, not worrying about the time. I haven’t decided on a position to take in the race yet, but might want to be behind the favorite. A smooth race will be the key.”

Shahryar

Hideaki Fujiwara, trainer
“He’s developing really nicely, and everything’s gone as I would have expected with him. There’s no big change in his weight. He’s an easy horse to ride and there’s no doubt he has ability. The jockey feels good about what the horse has done in training, including his usual work uphill. The 2,400 meters at Tokyo will be good for him.”

Nobuyuki Tashiro, assistant trainer
“Two starts ago he was able to handle racing left-handed, as well as the long journey to the track. Of course the runners from the Satsuki Sho are good, but this horse is as well. His hindquarters have become stronger in particular. I’ll look forward to his run this time.”

Yuichi Fukunaga, jockey
“He seems more developed now and he’s got to this point without any problems. Racing to the left is fine for him, and he’s shown he can handle the transportation to the track. The longer trip of the race is probably better than 1,800 meters, where he seems to have to work harder. It’s probably best to be drawn low at Tokyo and not lose too much ground in the run.”

Stella Veloce

Naosuke Sugai, trainer
“The horse looks good, and we haven’t had to do so much to get him ready for this. His times and movement have been as expected. He’s quite a relaxed type, and we have worked on him to keep him this way. The Nakayama track is a bit tricky, so I think he’ll be much better suited to Tokyo and the 2,400 meters there. I’m looking forward to his race.”

Hayato Yoshida, jockey
“I wasn’t worried about his time this week, but just chasing down his training partner was good enough. He’s a horse with a lot of power. He ran a good race last time, managing the corners well, and I think he can be flexible when it comes to the flow of a race and the distance.”

Time to Heaven

Yoshinori Saito, assistant trainer
“His breathing has improved, and we’ve worked on his rhythm in training rather than times. His last two races were over a mile, but I think he can adjust to the distance this time. While he’s still a bit immature, he’ll be going to the race in good condition, and with him improving for each race, it’ll be interesting to see how he goes this time.”

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Toru Kurita, trainer
“On his return to the stable, things have gone well with him. He’s relaxed, and the jockey’s been checking things with him. The horse has filled out and he looks very good. He doesn’t pull so much, and he should be able to put his strength to good use over this extended distance. On breeding, there’s plenty of stamina from his mother Mowen. Taking all these things into account, he should be able to run a good race.”

Hironobu Tanabe, jockey
“He’s adjusted to things well in training. For 3-year-olds over 2,400 meters, it’s hard to know just how they will do. He’s able to relax during a race. There are other fast horses in the field, so I’ll see how things go from the start to decide on things.”

Victipharus

Manabu Ikezoe, trainer
“His workload has been good, and it’s important to keep him relaxed, but things have been as usual with him, and he doesn’t have any bad habits. He should therefore be alright over the distance of the race. Right now the ground is riding quite fast and that might make it a bit difficult for him against this opposition, so some cut in the ground would help his chances.”

Wonderful Town

Yoshitada Takahashi, trainer
“There’s no problem with his condition, and after his work on the woodchip course this week he’ll be fine going into the race. It was important to get that last race in for him, as it had been five months since his one before that. Luckily he came out of it well and his hoof issue has cleared up. He’s by Rulership, so I hope he’ll get to put in the big strides that he has, and it’ll be interesting to see what he can do this time.”

Ryuji Wada, jockey
“His times have been fine and his preparation for the race has been very good. I want to get the best out of him, bearing in mind he gets a lot of power from his leg action. I think he can adjust to any kind of race, and I’ll think about things once I know the draw.”

Yoho Lake

Yasuo Tomomichi, trainer
“He did his hard training last week, so it’s just been steady with him this week. I think he’ll be fine over the 2,400 meters at Tokyo, as the long straight will give him time to move through the gears. I’m not worried about the going, as he’s a good strong horse that can put his footwork to good use.”