Admire Belle

Yukihiro Kato, trainer
“In the Japanese Oaks, I’d really wanted her to get some cover, but she wasn’t able to in the first half of the race. Actually, it was the horse right behind her that appeared to have gotten that very kind of trip. We discovered after the race that she’d had a bit of a sprain so I had her rest and she recovered completely. Takeshi Yokoyama rode her in work on Oct. 2 and she had a good, hard workout on the woodchip flat. She covered the last furlong in 11 seconds. She has filled out and she can now handle harder workouts. She has the long haul west, so I plan to just breeze her in her final workout. She was still immature in some ways in the spring, so I raced her taking those things into consideration. However, I now feel that she has matured and lost any immaturity.”

Bond Girl

Takahisa Tezuka, trainer
“In her last race, the Shion Stakes, we did the same as the race before, and kept her best for the last. It was the start of the meet and the track was conducive to producing record times. She tied for the fastest time over the final three furlongs and really gained ground, but she was just a bit too late. Her weight was down for that race, which is what I had expected and she has kept that weight since. On Oct. 2, I had her work toward the left for the first time in a while. She was keen and clocked 12 seconds over the final furlong, but it was a hard workout, which was good. The plan is to work her up the hill this week and haul to Kyoto on Friday. I think the track will be fast so it’ll come down to how the race unfolds. She will definitely have good late speed and I do think she measures up to the contenders.”

Cervinia

Christophe Lemaire, jockey
“She ran a great race in the Oaks last time out. She traveled toward the rear and, in the end, moved very well. Her footwork was fantastic. I knew her ability well and the Oka Sho result was unfortunate, but I knew she’d perform well in the Oaks. The Kyoto inner 2,000 meters is a tricky course. But, she’s able to get a good position easily. She’s easy to ride. Of course, things will depend on the start and on how well-balanced she is, but I think any position she gets will be good. I don’t think the right-handed track will be a factor. She’s capable of handling anything. I’m thinking of racing from a midfield position. The most important thing is that she is relaxed. She was a bit on edge in the Oka Sho and that caused her to tire in the end. Her responses are very quick and if her trip goes smoothly, I think she’ll be able to do well over the short stretch. Her late kick is very good. She can accelerate well. Of course, her condition on the day will matter, as will the track condition, but she has a chance.”

Tomokazu Takano, trainer
“She’s gotten good at the start but this last time, in the Nagakute Tokubetsu, we asked her to be patient. She moved well and I think that was the thing to focus on and gave better results. When she lined up with the others in the final stride, she moved out strongly and won the race. It was a very strong win. On Oct. 2, jockey Katsuma Sameshima rode her fast work and he had a good impression of her. He said that she’s ready and has got good stamina as well. She’s also in better shape now than she was for her last race. She’s still growing, but has won three of her five races. She has surprised me by running better than I had expected her to. I’m hoping she’ll be able to surprise me again this time, even with it being a G1.”

Christmas Parade

Yoshinori Ito, assistant trainer
“The ground was fast at Nakayama in September, so I didn’t think much of the times or her record in the Shion Stakes. I was more interested in confirming once again that she was showing some new talent that would stand her well in her fall campaign. She came back from the farm to Miho on Oct. 3. After the last race and at the farm she’d been eating well and in a good mood, and she didn’t get nervous even on the day she returned to the training center. She was calm and laidback. We’ll have to see how the change in surroundings affects her, which I think is the biggest concern. Seeing the performance she gave in the Shion Stakes, I think maintaining her condition will be enough. She’s coming into her own and maturing with every day.”

Hohelied

Toshiaki Tajima, trainer
“It was the first week of the meet, so the times were fast in the Shion Stakes. And her lack of speed was a factor in her finishing sixth. Still, I don’t think the race itself was bad. I kept her at the training center to prepare for here. I don’t think she has improved very much since her last start, but there have been no concerns regarding her preparation. It’s her first long trip to the track, but from her temperament, I don’t think the trip itself or the change in surroundings will pose a problem, so I’m not worried for now. I don’t think she’ll do well in a race that comes down to who has the fastest late speed, so it would help if there was rain. If the late times are slow, or stamina is a plus in deciding the race, then her strongpoints will stand her well.”

Koganeno Sora

Takanori Kikuzawa, trainer
“She came out of the Oaks well, so I aimed her at the Queen Stakes next. She had the advantage of only carrying 51kg and was in good condition, so she was able to do well against the older horses. I admit I was surprised at her win. She returned to Miho from the farm three weeks ago. She’d been ridden there, so there seem to be no problems with her movement and overall physical strength. We have the trip to Kyoto, so this week I wanted to go easy on her and just breezed her. I’d wanted to work on the woodchip course, but the track condition was bad, so we worked on the artificial surface. Her workout on Oct. 3 was a hard one, six furlongs on the flat over heavy ground with an overall time of 82.5 seconds. She’s still growing, but she’s ready. She has a great spring to her gait, is easy to work with, and I think the jockey (Yuji Tannai) will find her quite easy to ride. I’ve experienced the Shuka Sho many times. A flat 2,000 meters, tight turns and fast lap times, which makes for a tough finish. She has steadily improved and will go to the track in good shape.

Yutaka Okumura, trainer
“In her previous start, the Yuzuki Tokubetsu, she handled the ground well but lost. Nonetheless, she was able to run her own race. Whether racing at her own pace is good or bad depends on the others. I think that figured in the result. That said, it was a big thing that she had recovered from the exhaustion she’d experienced at the end of the spring. I passed on the trial and decided on this rotation so she’d go into the main event in good condition. She lost her previous race but she earned a berth here, which was lucky. She recovered quickly after her last race, so last week I gave her a hard workout and had jockey Kohei Matsuyama get a reading on her. Even though she was fifth in the Oaks, she does have two wins. A new course this time and key will be just how well she can execute it.”

Lavanda

Naoya Nakamura, trainer
“In the Rose Stakes, she didn’t quicken well in the stretch, and though she had been bit slow at the break and was sent forward, I think the biggest factor in her result was that she was returning to the track from time off. I had thought the same tactics would be fine, but she didn’t gain ground. On Oct. 3, she worked over seven furlongs on the woodchip course and clocked 80 seconds over six furlongs. She had run a bit to the inside so the time was a bit fast but she moved well, and I think it was her usual work. Everything was fine after her last race, with no apparent repercussions. I think she’ll show improvement this time, so her responses at the crucial moment should be better. I think there are more unknowns with it being the Kyoto inner course as compared to Chukyo, so I’m hoping she’ll get around OK and have a bit of help.”

Mi Anhelo

Toru Hayashi, trainer
“In the Shion Stakes, she was moving nicely in the pre-race warmup and I felt she was showing more mental maturity. Even with the track favoring the frontrunners, she gave a great performance and really raced well to finish in second. She went to the farm for a bit after that, where they took good care of her and she returned to Miho on Oct. 2. The next day I sent her down to Ritto. After seeing how she was doing, I had her breeze over seven furlongs on the flat on Oct. 6 under an assistant. From the spring, her strongpoint has been her ability to race at a good speed at length. She’s much stronger now and the display she gave us in her most recent race, shows me she has gained something. With the strong lineup, she’ll go into the race as a challenger, but if the Kyoto inner course proves a good fit, I think we can look forward to some good racing.”

Queen’s Walk

Yuga Kawada, jockey
“She was in great shape for the Rose Stakes. She ran well and it was an excellent prep. Her overall balance is better. She’s a great pleasure to ride. She’s the kind of horse you get on, canter, and then the moment she picks up the speed, you know how good she is. Even before her debut I thought she would compete at the G1 level. To be honest, her fast work last week wasn’t that good. Her time was good, but not her footwork. She seemed too tense for no apparent reason. So we’ve worked on improving that and this week’s work was much better. She’s more relaxed and her movement is nearly back to what it was. I didn’t ride this week but that’s what I’m told. I think 2,000 meters is just right for her. The inner Kyoto course is tricky and confusion is likely to arise. She has grown since the Oaks so I think she’ll be different. But, of course, the others have grown too. We’re up against strong competition. That’s one thing that hasn’t changed.”

Rabbiteye

Takashi Suzuki, trainer
“She didn’t seem to move that well in the Rose Stakes and I think that was because she was returning from time off. On Oct. 2, she worked together with two other horses on the woodchip flat course. She ran up from behind and passed them. She looked good and clocked 84.4 seconds over six furlongs. She came out of her previous race without any damage and her preparation has all gone without a glitch. In the spring, she did well in the Flower Cup, despite the strong competition. She has only won one race but I don’t think she is in any way inferior. I think the Kyoto 2,000 meters will be good for her. The competition this time will be stronger than her last race, so we’ll just have to see how well she measures up.”

Sekitoba East

Hirofumi Shii, trainer
“With her holding her ground out in front in the Rose Stakes, I was thinking if she’s gotten that far, just maybe… Still, it was a big gain because we now know she can go the distance. Her weight was up because a whole summer has passed and she has grown. Training has gone well. Last week, she worked alongside another horse on the woodchip course. The jockey (Yusuke Fujioka) said that even with her running well, she now is much more relaxed. She had a tight schedule in the spring and she did get nervous and tense at times. This time of year, I’m giving her a more relaxed schedule and she hasn’t gotten obstinate. She can race on or very close to the pace, so the Kyoto inner course should suit her. With it being a G1, the competition will be stronger, so I’m hoping she’ll do her best.”

Stellenbosch

Sakae Kunieda, trainer
“My expectations were high for her and she got good results in the spring. And I think she ran a good race in the Oaks. The winner was strong. This one losing is no tragedy. After that race, she went to the farm. It was a very hot summer but she held up well. Right after she returned to Miho, we sent her down to Ritto. I’ve had her train at Ritto again, because we got good results before. And, we avoid having to ship right before the race and she can go to the gate in a much calmer frame of mind. Last week, she was still a bit stiff from the previous week’s work, so I thought it best to work her up the hill course alongside another horse. On Oct. 9, she got quite a hard workout on the flat under the jockey (Keita Tosaki). Her overall time was fast but I had wanted to see a bit stronger finish. It’s been a while since she raced but her breathing isn’t bad. I think her responses will be perfect for the race. Her weight is up and she has matured mentally. She’s a talented horse and I want her to try her best and win another G1. I’ll leave the rest up to Tosaki.”

Tagano Elpida

Takashi Saito, trainer
“In the Rose Stakes, she did get a bit bogged down in the bad ground around the final bend and it did look like she’d be left behind. But, she closed the gap in the stretch to finish in fourth place. I don’t think it was a bad race for a preliminary. In the Oaks in the spring, she stopped running on her own, so the fact that she doesn’t do that anymore is a big thing. She didn’t incur any damage in the Rose Stakes and she worked up the hill course on Oct. 2 and looked good. In her last race, she showed she had weathered the summer well, and her weight was up 12kg. I think it’ll be good if she weighs in even heavier this time. She has improved with the sharpener and she’s good at the break. I think she’ll be able to travel from a good position and I also think the course will suit her. I’m hoping for a good race.”