Hidekatsu Shimizu, trainer
“He has been raced twice and both times he had the field’s fastest time over the final three furlongs. The others were clocking 35-some seconds and he has 33-some seconds both times. He won the last race from way back with really a sharp finish. After that race on Nov. 14, he went to the farm for a short time. Since coming back to the training center, he’s been looking good. Though I would like him to let off a bit of steam, things have gone as usual other than that. He is a bit timid, so for now he may not be able to race from a more forward position. Nonetheless, he has gotten results. I think the distance and the hill in the homestretch are fine with him. It is his first time racing to the right, but if we don’t try it, we won’t know how he’ll do. At Nakayama, it’s all decided at the bottom of the stretch slope. But seeing how well he did at Tokyo, I think he’ll be OK even if he has to take an outside course. If the race favors those who has the speed in the homestretch, that’ll be good for him.”

Ask Wild More

Hideaki Fujiwara, trainer
“He looks good. He is in the best shape he’s been in for a while. Physically, he had been pretty immature, but he’s gotten stronger with each race. He has experienced a course with two full turns before, so I think the conditions will suit him.”

Nobuyuki Tashiro, assistant trainer
“In his last race, the Grade 3 Sapporo Nisai Stakes, he still was able to run his own race. After that, he went to the farm for a bit and came back to Ritto Training Center, with this race as his next target. Since he’d been at Hakodate all through the summer, it was his first time at Ritto, but things have gone well with his prep. When the jockey (Yutaka Take) rode him for fast work, he remarked that the colt has really gotten stronger. He appears to be a strong colt mentally, and a change in surroundings doesn’t bother him. Though I think he can run from any position, he’ll do his best if he can run his own race.”

Born This Way

Koji Maki, trainer
“In the Habotan Sho last start on Dec. 4, it was the first week of the Nakayama meet and he drew an inside gate as well. His start was good, and he got a good position. He hasn’t shown any fatigue coming out of that race, and his footwork was good in fast work on Dec. 15. The jockey (Shu Ishibashi) breezed him on the flat course on Dec. 24. I think he’ll go to the gate in the same shape as he was for his last start. Being a very honest horse, he listens to cues well and even if other horses go ahead, he can wait patiently. He can race from any position and is very versatile. Physically, he’s still immature but he has gotten a lot stronger, and his movement since the last race hasn’t been bad. He has two wins at Nakayama (both over 2,000 meters) and being able to run his own race despite how things unfold is his strongpoint.”

Command Line

Sakae Kunieda, trainer
“In his last start, the pace was slow and jockey Christophe Lemaire did a good job of reading it and making his move. It was a very good ride and the colt gained good ground in the final stage. He came back looking one size bigger and now he’s at 530kg. His body is very well balanced, so he doesn’t seem to be too big. His work two weeks ago was a good start and from there, I’ve picked up the pace. In last week’s work on Dec. 16, I decided to push him pretty hard and started from far behind the horse in front and caught him nicely. I did think he would move better in the final stage, but his overall time was good so I still give him passing marks. The added distance is a plus. He is a big horse, but is not fat and I think he has just matured. He is very versatile and agile, so Nakayama will be OK for him. He is a calm horse, so the distance should be fine with him as well. He has lived up to expectations from his debut, so I’m eager to see how well he do in the G1 level.

Crowned Magic

Tadashi Kayo, trainer
“There have been no unexpected developments after his last race and all has gone well. We have been giving him lots of gate practice, which is his problem area. As for the venue, since we’re aiming for the top, we can’t very well complain about it. Since the summer, he has shown some signs of maturing, but he’s a big horse and his best condition is yet to come. Once he gets his engine going, he is a very serious, tenacious runner. I am interested in seeing what kind of race he’ll give us at the G1 level and, thinking of his future prospects, I really have my expectations up.”

Fidele

Yasuo Tomomichi, trainer
“After winning his debut, we couldn’t work him for a bit, and that meant that I had to get him ready for his last start (the Grade 3 Kyoto Nisai Stakes) rather quickly. In the race, he got a good position and I thought he was going to leave the others behind, but it didn’t work out that way. It wasn’t the trip or any such problems, it was because I couldn’t run him in the Nojigiku Stakes, so he hadn’t had enough work. He was just short of being at 100 percent. He looked like he was going to quicken just a bit more in the final stage and his finish was impressive. I think he’ll show improvement this time. He made the trip to Kokura just fine for his debut, so I don’t think going to Nakayama will be a problem. Of the 2-year-olds in the stable, this colt is top-class.”

Noboru Takagi, trainer
“In the Habotan Sho, I did worry about how could he do from the inside gate, but he got around pretty well and finished third. Since he has a big stride, he isn’t very agile and the inside gate did affect him somewhat. But, the race itself was good and will stand him well in the future. The slow early pace and final spurt were what saw him lose by such a small margin. He is better when he can make his own move. His hind legs are getting stronger, having been raced regularly. I have the impression that he’s much more solid now. His condition is the same as he was for the last race, and I’m hoping he’ll get a trip like he had two races ago, where he was able to move on his own. With an eye to the next year, I hope that he’ll show us some good racing.”

Justin Palace

Haruki Sugiyama, trainer
“In his last start, the Kigiku Sho, the pace was slow and he raced from a good position. It was a nice smooth trip. His work on Dec. 16 went as I had wanted it to. The overall time was slow but he ran well with his training partner, and the rider gave him a lot of encouragement. On Dec. 22, he worked under jockey Cristian Demuro on the flat course, so he could get a reading on the horse and check his responses. The work was done taking the long trip to the track into consideration. His time was pretty fast but we didn’t overdo it. To look at him, he hasn’t changed that much, but he’s much stronger and more solid now. He has good racing sense. But last time he did stop racing for a bit when he was moved out, so he still has a lot of maturing to do. We will have to see how he can handle the big field and how he’ll weather the trip to Nakayama.”

Killer Ability

Takashi Saito, trainer
“He was tense the whole time in his last start, but he did a real good job putting the others behind him in the stretch. He was overtaken just in the last strides to finish second. I think it was a good display of his ability. I think two full turns rather than just the one will make things easier for him. On Dec. 16, his fast work was just to check how he was communicating with the rider, how he was taking the bit, and how his responses were in the finish. His time was a bit faster than I’d wanted it to be, but the workout itself was a good one. He is looking good heading in to the race. Mentally and physically, he’s still immature and he has a somewhat difficult temperament, but he has a nice big stride and moves well. I think he’ll be able to handle the distance.”

Yoshitada Munakata, trainer
“On Dec. 16, he worked under the jockey (Kyosuke Maruta) over the woodchip course, at a pace of about 70 seconds over five furlongs and about 39 seconds over the last three furlongs. The jockey rode again on Dec. 22 and pushed the colt just before the end and he picked it up very well. After coming back to the training center from the farm, he was on edge and wouldn’t calm down, but now he has. His weight is at about 500kg now, and I think it’ll register a bit of a plus on raceday. As usual, he’s a big mover and his racing sense is excellent. He won his last two starts. I will be upping the pace, so he can get his speed up even more. And even though he can find it hard to calm down, he doesn’t have a problem when he’s racing. He can settle nicely and not get keen. It will be the same venue and the same distance as his start before, and I’m hoping he’ll be able to use his agility to his advantage.”

Mitsugu Kon, trainer
“I think he gets passing marks for his debut win. Things got pretty messy with traffic, but it didn’t faze him at all and it was a good win. There was ample time between that race and this one, so I think if things go as they have been, he’ll be in good shape. He is feeling good, is full of energy and I think the improvement will be quite marked. On Dec. 15, we gave him a very hard workout and it will surely get him ready. He is not bothered by racing amid the pack and Nakayama should be a good place for him to take advantage of his agility. It’s a G1, but even with these members, I’m looking forward to his race.”

Onyankopon

Shigeyuki Kojima, trainer
“After his last race, the Hyakunichiso Tokubetsu, he went to the farm for a bit and after returning to the training center, he ran a fever for some days. He did miss one workout because of that, and I do wonder if that will have an effect. I planned to get him ready in ample time, but am now hoping to just have him ready in the nick of time, and to accomplish that without hurrying him and overdoing it. I think he’ll just make it. Mentally, he’s very sound and I think having the regular jockey Akira Sugawara continues to ride helps. I myself rode work on Dec. 15 to make sure that his time wouldn’t get too fast and his movement did reflect the missed workout. With the workout on Dec. 22, I think he’ll be just right. He has good racing sense and I think his experience at Nakayama will serve him well.”

Satono Helios

Yasuo Tomomichi, trainer
“We brought him back into work on Dec. 16, and decided if he looks good, we’ll race him. In his last outing, he raced better than we had expected him to. He was listening well to the rider and, when things got tight in the homestretch, he split horses and advanced. He really showed his competitiveness and won in record time. Two starts ago, jockey Yuga Kawada had done a good job teaching him how to hold back and be patient. Last race was the result of that. He has improved with each start and, this time as well, I do think he’ll be right up there with the others.”

Hidenori Take, trainer
“Last out in his debut, the field was small and he won nicely. He raced from behind but still won the race, which was a huge accomplishment. The race itself wasn’t bad at all. Since he wasn’t 100 percent for his debut, he has now improved as I thought he would and is looking very good. He is much more toned and leaner now, but his weight is up. His movement has gotten better too. He is versatile and agile horse with fantastic stamina. The other members here will be strong, but with the improvement he’s showing, I’m quite looking forward to the race.”

Toru Kurita, trainer
“His work a week ago was quite good. His movement was on a par with that of Titleholder and he has shown improvement from his last start. He has good stamina, and physically he’s quite solid. In his debut, he was on and off the bit under way, and I had the impression that the hood may actually have worked against him, so I’m getting rid of it this time. He only has one win from the one start and there are many things he doesn’t understand about racing, but I’m looking forward to seeing how he’ll do. He is definitely stronger than what he was for his debut. He worked hard under jockey Hiroyuki Uchida on Dec 24, his final fast work, and his footwork was sharp.”