Comments taken from William McKay
"The facility here is first class, in my opinion very similar to Ascot, which is the best racecourse in England."
Comments taken from Timothy Pitt
"The staff has been very happy with him since he's been in the quarantine station, he traveled very well on the plane, at this time he seems very well. He's a very balanced horse and the track doesn't seem to pose any problems for him."
"He's won on very different types of tracks-straight tracks at Ascot and Newmarket. Lingfield, there's a left-handed course. After his last race we gave him a few weeks off and basically did our routine work with him and we've worked him on the right-handed tracks similar to here before coming here."
"He's very honest genuine horse, he's a duel grade-one winner over 1200 meters-two times in England. He's beaten Takeover Target twice over 1200 meters, and beaten the best sprinters in England and so we come here in good form. In his first G1 win in the Golden Jubilee, he drew an inside rail and with the horses moving to the center he had no traffic. John Egan who rode him at that time said that the horses were going fast so he was able to sit nicely in mid-division and from two furlongs out he went to the front and went to win his race very easily."
Comments taken from Eric Saint-Martin
"(riding Les Arcs for the first time this morning) He felt very relaxed and very well balanced galloping up the stretch. The course at Nakayama is a well-designed course-not tricky-with a long turn and a small stretch. I just want to make sure we have a good break and the best horse will win on that day. Never underestimate the Japanese horses because they are on their own territories and it's always tougher for the foreign horses-but Les Arcs is a very good horse and a good traveler. He's six years old and mature now so I think he's going to do good."
Comments taken from Steeve Gaillard
"We arrived on the 21st (Sept.). The horse is in very good condition and he's traveled well. We've only been in Nakayama since yesterday but he's handled the track well so far. He's quite laid back and a tough horse-he's relaxed here-but once he's stepped in the paddock he switches on and is a different horse. (as for the suitability to the track condition at Nakayama) The firm ground would suite him definitely. We don't plan to do any fast work here.we're very happy with his condition and his fitness. (as for running in a 1200m race in 12 months), he was only just beaten in a 1200 meters in the end of last year in Ireland so the distance shouldn't be a concern so we know we can do that. I think we'll just want to concentrate on winning the race and look forward to Sunday."
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