Al Naseem

Shinsuke Hashiguchi, trainer
“He was able to get a good position right from the start in the Fuji Stakes. He travelled balanced and in tune with the rider. And, even though he’s not the best racing to the left, he changed leads just fine. He stayed at the training center after that race and we aimed him for here. Jockey Yusuke Fujioka rode him on Nov. 6 for the very first time. They worked well together and the jockey gave him a very nice ride. And he appeared to get a good reading on the horse. From his movement and his body, you can clearly see that he has improved from his last race. Norihiro Yokoyama has educated the horse well and the horse’s training and racing have improved. The lineup will be strong in the G1 but the switch to a right-handed track is a plus. I’m looking forward to seeing how well he can do in this condition.”

Yoichi Ogawa, assistant trainer
“His mental state appears to have been a factor earlier, but as you can see, he started well in the Toki Stakes and I think he ran well in the Fuji Stakes too, during which he’s almost made a big scene in the stretch. Because he’d raced over the summer, we didn’t want to push him too hard in his workout on Nov. 6. He clocked 11.9 seconds over the last furlong. He looks to be in good shape and I have the feeling he has matured. He‘ll be racing to the right for the first time in a while, but he has matured both physically and mentally, so I don’t think there’ll be a problem. I think we can look forward to a good run in the G1.”

Brede Weg

Keisuke Miyata, trainer
“She’s had a lot of time off with things not going smoothly, having to cancel going to Dubai and, in the summer, having to withdraw from the Niigata Kinen. But, a week before the Fuchu Himba Stakes she showed improvement and I was able to put the finishing touches on. And with that race she once again showed that even up against strong competition, she is fabulous, a cut above. After the race, she was showing some pain in her back, so she went to the farm for some care. And with that, she returned painfree to the training center on Oct. 31. After cantering her the next day, she was running smoothly and her preparation has come along without a hitch. On Nov. 6 she worked behind two others and lengthened very nicely over the final furlong. She’ll go into this race as the challenger, up against top milers both from home and abroad, but this path has opened up for us now, and she displayed excellent forward momentum in her last race. With the homestretch at Kyoto shorter than Tokyo, her position over the first half of the race is going to be key.”

Yuichiro Eiraku, assistant trainer
“After not making it into the race we wanted to, it was difficult getting her ready, but on the other hand, her improvement was great after her most recent race (the Fuji Stakes) and her gaits are pretty good. She’s strong in that way, likely because she’s very lithe. On Nov. 6, she worked together with Rouge Lignage and moved easily. The jockey did a real good job in the Fuji Stakes and I think 1,600 is just at her limit for as far as being competitive goes. Things will be tough with all the competition of a G1 but with the good shape she’s in I’m looking forward to seeing just how far she can go.”

Elton Barows

Haruki Sugiyama, trainer
“In his last start, the Mainichi Okan, he had drawn wide but he was able to get a good position. He was in good shape. In the spring he wouldn’t have been able to get that kind of position. He has mostly returned to where he was at his best. Two weeks ago he worked up the hill course and because he had a race under his belt and there hasn’t been much time between races he doesn’t show much change and his prep is going as usual. In the first half of last week’s work he was feeling a bit too good and he took off and it was really hard to hold him back. But I think that kind of energy is a good thing for him. It’s a mile this time and I think him being on his toes is just right. He was fourth last year in the Mile Championship and I think the conditions of the Kyoto mile suit him. He has come along with no problems, is in good condition and I hope he can maintain that until the race.”

Fierce Pride

Sakae Kunieda, trainer
“In the Fuchu Himba Stakes, she’d been returning from a layoff and though she wasn’t moving all that well in work, in the race she did run well. I think it was a satisfactory performance for her first start back. I’d also had the plan after the Fuchu Himba Stakes to next run in the Turquoise Stakes at the end of the year but since she came out of the last race very well and without any fatigue, I decided to aim her here. Agewise, I haven’t felt she has changed in any big way. Her work was good last week on Nov. 6. In the spring she’d competed against other females and from her second-place finish in a mile G1, it looks like the distance this time will be better for her than the 1,800 meters of the Fuchu Himba Stakes. It won’t be easy up against male horses but I’m hoping she can improve on her performance in her last outing.”

Jun Blossom

Keita Tosaki, jockey
“The race before the Fuji Stakes (the Sekiya Kinen) was the first time I’d ridden him. The start wasn’t the best but he kept up with the pace very well, so I just concentrated on that. Then in the preliminaries to the Fuji Stakes, I noticed how much he had improved. And that must have contributed to his start because it was good. Again, he went well with the flow and extended nicely in the finish. So, that race was much better and he was able to draw on all his ability, so I think he’s coming along very well. Since then I’ve heard that his prep has gone well. Last race he felt really good and won so I think that’s the way he’ll be this time and that’s the feeling I will go with. I’m expecting him to have something in the tank for the final stage, so I’ll be looking to approach the final stage in such a way as to bring that ability out. There are horses that are very strong over the mile but this one is coming off a nice step race and I hope to get the best out of him.”

Labeling

Yuichi Shikato, trainer
“He had to have a sudden change of jockeys last out in the Shinetsu Stakes, but he ran a strong race. He’d had some time off and looked to be feeling good, so I had my hopes up. The jockey gave him a really good ride and the horse and rider were very well in tune. He was able to keep something in reserve for the end and it was a strong win. I kept him at the training center after that to get ready for here. The jockey rode him in work last week together with two other horses and things went as planned. It looks like the jockey got a good reading on him and I think he’ll go in to the race in good condition again. His balance and ability to work with the rider have improved a lot in his morning work and I feel he has greatly matured. He has gotten good results before in his races and I do think he’ll be able to maintain an even keel over the mile. I’m looking forward to the race.”

Matenro Sky

Mikio Matsunaga, trainer
“He went as planned from the Mainichi Okan to the Tenno Sho and he ran a good solid race in the latter, and was able to make the board even with the strong competition. He didn’t lug out like he had in the Mainichi Okan and I guess the long break he’d had before that race had been a factor. He came out of the Tenno Sho well, with no damage, so again it’s only 2 full weeks between races and I’m being especially careful preparing him. I don’t think there’s any need to give him any heavy work. He breezed up the hill course on Nov. 6 and all looked well. He’s raced over the mile before and he has the speed to be competitive at the distance. He’s the type of horse that improves with a race, so his condition is good. I have my hopes up.”

Namur

Tomokazu Takano, trainer
“In the spring, we raced in Dubai, then Tokyo, and Tokyo again, with not much time between races. We wanted to refresh her over the summer but figured it was better to allow her to get used to the heat. So, we kept her on the mainland instead of Hokkaido and she never went into a slump from the heat. She returned to Ritto after getting a good base of work. She is coming off a layoff, but she’s had regular work and I figured she didn’t need to do any really fast work. I also didn’t give her any step races, just focused on getting her very fit. And I saw the results in her work last week. She looked in ideal condition. This week too, I’m satisfied with what I saw and believe she’ll be able to bring out her best in the race. Last year, she’d improved after her run in the Fuji Stakes, but this year I see no difference between her condition then and now. She actually has more muscle mass now and I hope that will show itself in a powerful performance. With her overseas trip, her mental state is also better. She’s much more experienced and I can feel that. I’m sure the late Kota Fujioka (who rode in the Mile Championship last year) will be cheering us on and, as the defending champion, I don’t want to lose.”

Nihonpiro Kyiv

Yuki Ohashi, trainer
“In his most recent race, the Cassiopeia Stakes, he raced right behind the eventual winner and I think if the jockey had been able to bring him out in the stretch he would have been able to get closer to the top, but recently he’s taken the last turn slower than usual and he got left behind. Overall he gives a good performance but he doesn’t have that final push needed. It’s a G1 this time and I don’t think it’ll be easy. He has made third over the same conditions in the Yomiuri Milers Cup and I think the shorter distance this time will be a plus.”

Obamburumai

Keiji Yoshimura, trainer
“The pace was fast in the Sprinters Stakes and it was tough just trying to keep up. In the race before that, the Keeneland Cup, he’d been able to make up the ground and finish in the money, but the G1 was a different story. It was tough. A mile distance will suit him better, that’s what the jockey, Yutaka Take, said after the race. And after that we decided to take on the Mile Championship. He spent time at the farm after the Sprinters and he came back to the training center quite filled out. He’s looking quite well. He worked over the course for 6 furlongs on Nov. 6 and it was a good hard workout. Take has been his partner for the Arlington Cup and the NHK Mile Cup and he’s done well in graded stakes over the mile. The jockey knows the horse and I’m hoping he’ll be able to work well on this stage.”

Serifos

Taku Fukunaga, assistant trainer
“The Fuji Stakes was his first race in 4 months and he didn’t seem to relax over the first half. Coming off a layoff was part of it, and also that he wasn’t up to his best yet. Still, he was able to run in good form. On Nov. 6, he clocked 79.5 seconds over 6 furlongs on the woodchip course, which was a bit faster than we’d planned, but he has always run well in work. He moved well. He’d come out of the race without damage and his preparation has been going well. He’s toned and lean and with one more bit of work this week, he should be able to head to the gate in good shape. He won this race the year before last, and finished eighth last year. I think he has sufficient ability to do well. Once he’s racing, the main point is still how much he can relax. He’s had the one sharpener, so he should be able to relax more over the first half this time.”

Soul Rush

Yuki Iwasaki, assistant trainer
“With an eye to this race, we had him at a little less than peak condition for the Fuji Stakes. He was able to nicely run in amid the others under way and save something for later. He turned in to the stretch looking good, but when he went to split the ranks, he was overtaken by the winner speeding up the outside. Still, it was a good run. He went to the farm for a bit and then returned to the training center on Oct. 30. Everything has gone well. Jockey Taisei Danno rode work on Nov. 7 and said he felt the horse needed to be a bit sharper but that his responses were good. And if the horse switches on with that workout, they’ll be even better. He’s now 6 years old and his growth should be complete. He’s gotten the same preparation as he always has and last year he finished a very frustrating second. I really want him to get a G1 title.”

Time to Heaven

Yoshinori Saito, assistant trainer
“In the Fuji Stakes, when the jockey moved him to the outside things didn’t go smoothly. And after that he got interfered a number of times and just couldn’t quicken more. There’s not much time between races, so this week we just worked him alone on the woodchip course and he seemed to be enjoying his work. The rider, jockey Sho Ueno, said ‘In a good way, he’s the same as always.’ The horse will be racing to the right this time and he does tend to race more smoothly in this direction. If things unfold in a way that works well for him I think he has a chance at results like he had in the Keisei Hai Autumn Handicap (2nd place).”

Win Marvel

Masashi Fukayama, trainer
“He ran a real honest race in the Sprinters Stakes, but I don’t think his best distance is 1,200 meters. There’s no turf Grade 1 race at 1,400 meters, but we do want to continue to race him in big races, so I thought it would be good to take on a 1,600. I also discussed this with the jockey and decided that after some time off at the farm, we’d take on this race as our challenge. I had wanted the horse to have a good, solid workout last week, and, despite his stumbling once in the stretch on Nov. 6, his responses were excellent and he quickened well in the last stage. He has also maintained his weight. In the Swan Stakes, he wasn’t able to pick up speed down the slope but his balance has improved since last year so I don’t think the course doesn’t suit. We won’t know until we try but if he can handle the distance I think he’ll be able to bring out his power here as well.”