Forever Young fifth as Breeders' Cup Classic title defense falls short; T O Elvis scores ground-breaking win in Sprint

T O Elvis

Forever Young prompted questions while T O Elvis had the answers as the JRA’s traveling party were handed mixed results at the 43rd Breeders’ Cup on Saturday (Oct. 31).

Forever Young was looking to become only the second horse in history, and the first in 25 years since Tiznow (2000-01), to defend the Breeders’ Cup Classic title but came up short, falling to a head-scratching fifth place in the flagship race at Keeneland Racecourse in Kentucky.

T O Elvis, on the other hand, became Japan’s first-ever winner of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint, overtaking favorite Englishman to take home the honors.

Also in the Sprint from the JRA, American Stage was 12th. In the Classic, T O Password one-upped Forever Young, finishing fourth. In the Dirt Mile, Lord Fons was sixth. Ask Ikigomi came in an impressive fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Mile (Lugal was 11th) while 8-year-old Deep Monster went down last in a field of 14 in the Breeders’ Cup Turf.

Betting favorite Forever Young looked good for the most part of the 2,000-meter Classic, traveling just off the pace in his preferred position. But the Forever Young of last year, under Ryusei Sakai, was nowhere to be found, lacking the kick to challenge second choice Sovereignty, the 2025 Horse of the Year and Kentucky Derby winner who called it a spectacular career with his eighth win in 13 starts.

Even Forever Young’s esteemed trainer Yoshito Yahagi, who has been there and done that in racing, could not offer an explanation for the 5-year-old who had won 12 of 16, never having finished under third.

“I had several scenarios in my head and we managed to take the best position we could,” Yahagi said. “Given the pace, I didn’t think anyone could beat us from behind. I’m at a complete loss. I wish I had an explanation but I have no idea.

“Ryusei had excellent position and I didn’t see us losing - but he just didn’t respond. The jockey didn’t have a clue either. I am sorry about the result but the horse came home in one piece, which is probably the most important thing. I don’t know what lies ahead but we need to take a close look at him and get to the bottom of things. I feel nothing but disappointment.”

Sakai was equally at a loss for an explanation.

“Napoleon Solo didn’t push forward as much as we thought he would so the pace didn’t pick up that much,” he said. “We slid into second position seamlessly and I felt pretty good about our chances going into the first turn. The race unfolded just like last year and I thought it was completely there for the taking.

“Unlike Dubai when he stopped responding early, all signs pointed to another win for us today. I was planning on going side by side with Sovereignty but when he came at us, we had nothing left. Not winning today is obviously disappointing but we need to go over the race with the trainer and the rest of the team.”

Reunited with jockey Kazushi Kimura for the first time since 2024 Kentucky Derby, the Daisuke Takayanagi-trained T O Password marked pacesetter Knightsbridge during the trip, right near Forever Young. While he missed the winner’s circle, the T O Password team were more than happy with the effort from its 5-year-old.

Said Kimura, “The horse ran his heart out as the result of fourth place shows. I thought the race would be a lot more hectic but we settled into position right behind the frontrunner pretty smoothly so we managed to stay calm throughout.

“He was showing signs he was in excellent condition during the workouts and I knew from two years ago that this horse had class. He raced to his huge upside on this big stage. If we had the opportunity to go inside I wanted to stay right behind the lead so the dirt wouldn’t be flying in our faces. And as things turned out, it all went like we planned.

“When we rounded the last turn he was responding really well and when a lane opened up, I thought we had it for a split second. I know he has the quality to win graded races in Japan so I hope he keeps this up.”

Takayanagi agreed.

“T O Password left it all out there for sure. After we were drawn in the inside barrier I spoke with the jockey and because we didn’t want him eating the dirt and looking at film of his past races, we had to go where he went so everything was according to plan. We had some concerns around the distance but I think the surface in America suits him. He ran a heck of a race.”

The 4-year-old T O Elvis now has seven victories from 10 starts with a trio of third-place finishes. He has won six in a row including the Churchill Downs Stakes in May, and is the first Japan-based winner of a Grade 1 international dirt sprint race.

T O Elvis stopped the clock in 1 minute, 8.20 seconds and put a length a quarter on Englishman, who is the favorite to win an Eclipse Award this season.

“He was in very good shape and I rode him with confidence and the belief that my horse was the strongest,” Sakai said. “I knew the race would get busy. We could have pushed up but I didn’t think it was worth disrupting his rhythm so just tried to play to his strengths.

“The pace quickened and Englishman made his move early. I felt like if we couldn’t catch him then it wasn’t meant to be. But he was impressive. We had one horse to beat with a furlong to go but T O Elvis is a horse capable of closing hard so I was confident.

“I still can’t believe we won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint. Of course that is what we were trying to do but he pulled off something incredible. I’m thrilled I was able to come through for everyone associated with this horse - the owner, trainer, groom, Yusuke Fujioka who was on him in him workouts, everyone.”

The trainer echoed the jockey’s sentiments.

“It was like a dream and I thought my heart was going to stop,” he said. “T O Elvis can handle a change in scenery so I wasn’t worried about the horse himself. Good, solid start and he had to decide on position. The jockey told us that if the pace picked up, he was going to sit back so when we saw him sit back, we assumed the race was pretty fast. When he came home outside on the straight, I was just praying he’d hang in until the finish. It all hasn’t quite sunk in yet.”

Sakai had three mounts on this day at the Breeders’ Cup that resulted in a wide range of emotions. Three-year-old Ask Ikigomi’s performance in the Mile could perhaps prove to be the most intriguing looking ahead to the future.

“He’s only three and he ran really well considering it was his fourth start,” trainer Hideaki Fujiwara said. “He was fifth but the jockey said it was a proud fifth and I think the performance really is something we can all be proud of. We brought him here at his age with the owner’s blessing and understanding that he should compete on the biggest stage down the line somewhere. So part of it was to give him experience but we like to think he carried himself very well.

“His next start will be next year but I think he will be able to build on this wherever he races in the world. We have to be sure to make this count going forward as we are eyeing big things for him whether it’s in Japan or overseas.

Added Sakai, “He’s not the quickest off the block so our positioning during the trip is what it is. He was fine with the going. To place fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Mile gives us something to look forward to in the future. He really gave it his all.

*The official results (Equibase)
Day 2, Oct. 31

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