Ablaze

Yasutoshi Ikee, trainer
“She seems like she’s in better shape than she was for her last race. She might not want rain, and to some extent it will depend on how she gets into the race over the mile.”

Yuki Iwasaki, assistant trainer
“There is no damage after her last race, and with the short interval between races, we haven’t pushed her too hard, but she’s done enough in training. I think she’ll run well over the mile at Tokyo. She got a bit squeezed for room last time and wasn’t able to run on, but I think she’ll benefit from racing at a different track this time, despite it being a wider course, and I want her to do her best.”

Akai Ito

Kazuya Nakatake, trainer
“I have no complaints with her, and she’s worked in her usual way in training. I hope the pace isn’t too fast in the race itself.”

Masaaki Shibata, assistant trainer
“She has been working well uphill, despite the bad ground, and there’s no big change with her. She has improved for her races and she looks to be in good shape at the moment. It will be interesting to see how she does over the mile this time, but hopefully she’ll get a good start and be able to produce a good finish in the closing stages.”

Hideaki Miyuki, jockey
“There is no real change with her, and she’s given it her best in training this past week. The mile is a bit of an unknown, and she’ll have to get into a good rhythm, but recently she’s been getting off to a good start in her races, and I don’t have to worry about her getting a good position in a race.”

Andvaranaut

Manabu Ikezoe, trainer
“After going to the farm for a break, we’ve just been careful not to overwork her, given the short time since her last race. She is moving well right now though. She has had experience racing left-handed and also the long transportation to different tracks. The Tokyo mile is tough, but I think she can respond well over it. If she gets to run in a similar way to last time, when she was back to her best, showing how she can finish, there won’t be much in it between her and the others.”

Daring Tact

Haruki Sugiyama, trainer
“The jockey says that she’s improved over the last couple of weeks as this race approaches. Her body has changed over time, together with her coat and general condition. She ran as I expected this last week, training uphill, and we didn’t overwork her. This next race is over a mile at the wide Tokyo course, and there’ll be a lot of attention given to her, so my main concern is that things go smoothly. That goes for everything leading up to the race as well, during which I hope she’ll be in the best condition just before it. Coming off her layoff, it’s hard to know exactly.”

Kohei Matsuyama, jockey
“In her last piece of work, I just checked her changing leads and her overall rhythm. She moved well, and I was careful not to overdo things with her. She feels a little bigger now, but I’ve been able to see her improvement these past three weeks. A mile might be her best trip now. It will be her first time over a mile at Tokyo, but she’s won over a mile, so it shouldn’t be a problem. It feels like a fresh start with her now, so I want to do my best.”

Des Ailes

Yasuo Tomomichi, trainer
“She has been running well in training, and hasn’t been leaning to the right at all. There is a nice shape to her now. Jockey Kota Fujioka will ride her in the race for the first time, but in training he’s ridden her quite a bit and has got to know the horse. The long homestraight at Tokyo will be good for her, and I’m looking forward to her performance this time.”

Yasuo Tomomichi, trainer
“She gets better with her races, and if you look at her, a mile would seem a suitable distance for her to show her best. It will be her first time at Tokyo, but she has handled Chukyo well, so racing left-handed suits her, and I think she can match up to the Grade 1 field here.”

Fine Rouge

Tetsuya Kimura, trainer
“I consider her to have done enough in training, where she ran on the woodchip course this last week with two other horses. It might be three months since she’s had a run, but she’s switched on and knows a race is coming. She is moving well, and has made the step up to tackle this next race. She ran in the Tokyo Shimbun Hai, so there’s no problem with the distance. In the strong line-up, and whatever the weather brings, I want her to do her best.”

Yu Ota, assistant trainer
“She has been improving day by day, and is looking good in her coat and stature. We take care regarding her hooves, so she should be in good enough condition just before the race. I think the Tokyo course suits her, where it takes a bit of time to get fully wound up.”

Kurino Premium

Shinichi Ito, trainer
“There has only been two weeks between races, but she’s kept her condition well, and she put in a fast piece of work this last week on the woodchip course. Things are fine going into the race. I get the feeling she runs best racing left-handed, as she has shown at Niigata, and the Tokyo mile shouldn’t present any problems. Of course, there are plenty of strong horses in the race this time, but I’m interested to see how she can do if she gets to run her own race.”

Masami Matsuoka, jockey
“I can rely on the trainer to have the horse in good condition, and that is the case now. It will be important to get a good position in the race, with the opposition as strong as it is. I think some rain would help her chances.”

Lei Papale

Tomokazu Takano, trainer
“The staff at Northern Farm Shigaraki have taken good care of her during her break, and she’s returned to the stable in great shape. In training last week, we pushed her hard and her movement’s been good and she’s combined well with the jockey in training as well. She is generally quite relaxed when transporting, and also overnight at the stable. I think she should be at her best for this next race, and I can trust the jockey to get the best out of her too.”

Yuga Kawada, jockey
“She felt good before her last race, and she ran well in the race itself. I hear that since then things have been fine with her, and this last week in training there were no problems, so I was pleased about that too. We will have to see about the Tokyo mile with her, but it feels like she can run a strong race, so I’m really looking forward to it.”

Magic Castle

Sakae Kunieda, trainer
“She is in about the same condition as she was for her last race, but the warmer weather is better for her. She just needed to find a bit more last time, but in her run in this race last year, among the strong opposition, she managed to finish third, so you have to say the course suits her. It is her third race this year, and she’ll have the same jockey as she did in last year’s race, so I think she can do well this time too.”

Keita Tosaki, jockey
“She is in good shape, and it feels like she wants to run. Her responses have been good at the end of her work. I haven’t ridden her in her last two races, but things seem to be the same with her.”

Meisho Mimosa

Akishi Higashida, assistant trainer
“She has shown how much stronger she’s become mentally, so it’s a good thing to see her develop in this way. The race will be the same distance as last time, but it’s just a change of track. It is a strong Grade 1 field, but the key will be getting her to have a ground saving run like her last race.”

Miss New York

Haruki Sugiyama, trainer
“She is not one to show a lot in training, but she’s in good shape as this Grade 1 approaches. She ran a strong race two starts ago over a mile at Nakayama, so I feel she can run well at Tokyo too, although racing left-handed needs to be proven more. The jockey (Mirco Demuro) always does well with the horse, so that’s another plus.”

Resistencia

Takeshi Matsushita, trainer
“She has been training as usual, posting good times. Her appetite’s been good, and this past week she’s moved well. She will have to transport over to the track, so she might just weigh a little less than she did for her last race. It has been a year since her last run over a mile, and while it might not be her best distance, I think she can run well over it. There was a strong horse in the race last year, but regarding the others, there wasn’t much difference between them. If she can run smoothly and just find a bit more, things can go her way this time.”

Masato Nishizono, trainer
“Everything has gone as I would have expected since her return to the stable with this race in mind. It is a strong field in the race itself, but she’s in good enough condition to run well. Ideally, she’ll race the way she did when leading all the way to win two starts ago. She will need to run at a pace that suits her, and we’ll just have to see how she gets on. I hope things go her way.”

Shadow Diva

Makoto Saito, trainer
“She has worked well in training, and with the jockey working her, I have a good image of things. This last week, she’s just had fast work, and she doesn’t seem to show her age. In her last race, she didn’t get a good result, so I think a mile is better for her. One of her best races was in last year’s Fuchu Himba Stakes, so that proves how she can run at Tokyo, and it would be good if she could reproduce that form.”

Ryusei Sakai, jockey
“These past two weeks she’s moved well in training, and I feel that she’s in the kind of condition I would expect her to be in.”

Sodashi

Naosuke Sugai, trainer
“She has been running with a lot of power in training, and her gate practice has been good. We have tried to make sure she doesn’t have any stress, so that she is relaxed and runs smoothly. She seems calmer with age. She will be up against other strong opponents this time, ones that have a proven record, so she’ll be a brave challenger here. She showed last time that a race with just the one turn is suitable for her, and I think she can handle any ground. Hopefully for her many fans, she’ll give a good account of herself.”

Hayato Yoshida, jockey
“Since a week ago, I’ve been pleased with her responses, and I’ve just checked her rhythm with another horse racing in front. As she’s developed, she’s become a lot calmer, but she still has a bit of a mind of her own. She ran well in the February Stakes on dirt last time, and didn’t stop in what was a fast run race.”

Songline

Toru Hayashi, trainer
“She ran well in training last week with jockey Kenichi Ikezoe, and this last week Akihide Tsumura rode her in work. The horse ran strongly, right up to, and past the finish line, so her training’s been good. I think she can get a good result in the race, and her race jockey also thinks so, and he is not worried about how the ground might be on the day.”

Kenichi Ikezoe, jockey
“She ran well in last year’s NHK Mile Cup and Fuji Stakes, both over a mile at Tokyo, so I think she can run a big race in the Victoria Mile too. The field’s strong this time as well, but I think Songline has a good enough chance and I look forward to her run on the day.”

Terzetto

Shoichiro Wada, trainer
“She has stretched out well at the end of her runs in training and has handled things well. She hasn’t gotten too worked up about things, so her condition is good as the race approaches. Her race jockey (Damian Lane) seems to have good control over her, so there doesn’t seem to be any problem.”