Arima Kinen (Grand Prix) (G1) comments from runners' connections
| Air Shady (7yo, horse) |
Air Shady |
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Masanori Ito (trainer)
"It was always our plan from the spring to enter the Arima Kinen from the Tenno Sho (Autumn). Everything has gone the way we had hoped it would."
Hiroki Goto
"He showed a lot of fight, didn't back down one bit (in the workout). Mentally, he's right there. He stayed focused during the entire workout, and he's a physically stronger horse than in the spring. Running the way he did in his last race, I have a lot of confidence in him."
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| Air Zipangu (5yo, gelding) |
Air Zipangu |
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Hitoshi Ogino (exercise rider)
"He's been good. The other horses will be tough, but I actually think a Grade 1 pace will suit him. I can't wait to see how he does. It's been just two weeks since he won the Stayers Stakes so he's already in race shape. He had it easy in the workout because we're saving himself for the race. He doesn't wear out easily, and we hope he does well because he's in superb condition right now."
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| Admire Monarch (7yo, horse) |
Admire Monarch |
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Hiroyoshi Matsuda (trainer)
"Just working on the finishing, as always. I think he moved well by his standards. I'm not worried about his form, and he hasn't been able to give it 100 percent his last two times out."
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| Al Nasrain (4yo, colt) |
Al Nasrain (right) |
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Shigeki Matsumoto (trainer)
"He's coming along fine. The track was poor so his time wasn't good, but he responded very well. We're as ready as we can be at this moment. At the very least, he's 90 percent fit."
Olivier Peslier
"He was a little tense so he finished slow, but he's an easy one to ride. I don't get the impression that he's the type to creep up on the lead from inside. We need room on the straight so we could use an outside draw. He's a very broad, muscular horse. He has the qualities of a Grade 1 horse."
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| Asakusa Kings (4yo, colt) |
Asakusa Kings (left) |
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Ryuji Okubo (trainer)
"He went all out last week, and took the bit on Sunday. I didn't think we needed to do a lot more. He's been able to maintain a decent level of form lately. It makes a big difference when (Hirofumi) Shii rides him. His condition is good, so if he runs as well as we know he can, the end result will be there. He's much tougher mentally, and I think he's taken himself up a notch."
Hirofumi Shii
"I don't think he's ever worked that well last week. He's in really good form. I think we'll have to make the move early with Matsurida (Gogh) and (Daiwa) Scarlet in the field. It'll be a tough race, but I think with good positioning, we have a chance."
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| Cosmo Bulk (7yo, horse) |
Cosmo Bulk |
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Kazunori Tabe (trainer)
"With this draw (in post No. 3), we have the shortest trip. Now hopefully, we can settle into the pace behind Daiwa Scarlet."
Masami Matsuoka
"We drew the outside barrier in the last race, and he wasn't relaxed. He was slower in the workout than we had planned, but he doesn't seem to be affected by the travel. He's in better shape this time around. He gets too excited when there's a horse in front of him, so ideally we want him on the lead. I don't get the feeling he's slowed down at all."
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| Daiwa Scarlet (4yo, filly) |
Daiwa Scarlet |
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Kunihide Matsuda (trainer)
"She looks a lot better around her back and at the hip compared to the Tenno Sho (Autumn). I think she really has her movement right now. She's very relaxed, and is comfortable enough not to be swayed by people around her. She's matured and is really coming into her own as a racehorse. We want to race her overseas next year, and we hope we can race against Vodka abroad. So we're really looking forward to this Arima Kinen."
Katsumi Ando
"She ran at a good rhythm. She was loose and a lot more relaxed than she was last week. She didn't feel like she was stopping (in the Tenno Sho (Autumn)). It was the other way around; the horses outside seemed like they were slowing down. Her footwork is smooth, and if she runs at her rhythm she won't stop. It's how she managed to keep it so close. She's much more powerful than she was a year ago. She just has to take it easy and not worry about the other horses."
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| Dream Journey (4yo, colt) |
Dream Journey |
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Yasutoshi Ikee (trainer)
"He tends to lean inside when he runs lefthanded, so Nakayama is a big plus for him. I think his best distance is around 2,000 meters, but there are a lot of turns at the course and the pace doesn't pick up. So I think he can overcome it."
Kenichi Ikezoe
"He took the bit on his own, and his response time was good. His breathing was better than last week, and he's in just as good shape as he was for his last race. No change there. There's no point in worrying about the opponents. He has a good closing rush and I hope I can get it out of him."
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| Eishin Deputy (6yo, horse) |
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Scratched
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| Flotation (3yo, colt) |
Flotation |
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Kojiro Hashiguchi (trainer)
"He ran with good form in his workout, and I have no concerns with his conditioning. He has a good track record at Nakayama and the jockey always gives us hope, but I think the field might be too strong for him this time."
Christophe Lemaire
"I think he has all the qualities to run a good Arima Kinen. It's nice to be able to race in the Arima Kinen with (trainer Hashiguchi, whom Lemaire tagged with to lead Heart's Cry to victory in this race in 2005). I think I have the best horse. The Japan Cup has a long straight at Tokyo, but in the Arima Kinen, the straight at Nakayama is short so he has a shot. Like Heart's Cry, you need stamina and a good position to run well in the Arima Kinen, and this horse has those qualities."
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| Kawakami Princess (5yo, mare) |
Kawakami Princess |
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Katsuichi Nishiura (trainer)
"She had a hard workout last week so we didn't need to do more today. It's just her third race (after a 5-month break), so there's plenty of room to improve. Hopefully she'll hit her peak on the day of the race. I think she's had her best workout yet. The harder you work Kawakami Princess, the more she responds. It's our job to help her run to the maximum of her ability."
Michio Yanagida (groom)
"The track was a little slippery with the frost. She could have used more work but we didn't want to risk it. She gets better with each race, and her footwork is getting lighter and lighter. We'd like to think she can compete even against the boys. "
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| Matsurida Gogh (5yo, horse) |
Matsurida Gogh |
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Sakae Kunieda (trainer)
"Masayoshi (Ebina) wanted to check him out on the polytrack so we went there. He's in race condition after the Japan Cup so we're good. His time today was the same as it was in last year's Arima Kinen. We had some concerns about running lefthanded in the Japan Cup, but what troubled him even more was the pace. It was very slow for a race at that level, and he had a hard time staying with the pace. But we're at Nakayama this time where he instinctively seems to know when to make the move. He's always been an aggressive horse, so I think a tight course like Nakayama, where the race tends to bunch up, works in his favor. He should be able to run at a rhythm he likes and I'm pretty sure he'll perform as well as last year. I have all the faith in the world in the jockey. This is it for this year, and I want a happy ending to it."
Masayoshi Ebina
"He's managed to stay in very good form. He looks like he can't wait to race. He was already in excellent form for the Japan Cup, and I didn't want to overwork him today. He just went through the motions. We'll be going into the race upbeat. That he ran well lefthanded says a lot about his improvement. It's probably tough to tell just watching him, but when you're sitting on him, it's really different. He's just much smoother righthanded. I think we've been able to prove that last year's victory was no fluke in the last several races. Last year, we didn't have any pressure but this year is a little different. We haven't competed against some of the horses, and we feel like we have to win it again as challengers, not defend it."
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| Meisho Samson (5yo, horse) |
Meisho Samson |
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Shigetada Takahashi (trainer)
"The track was a bit heavy, but he worked well. The horse he worked with is a good training horse, and (Meisho Samson) isn't heavy and he just looks good. He'll be out there in better shape than last year. He's only had two races this fall, so he's full of energy. He's going into the Arima Kinen on the up. I don't think we have anything to worry about with the jockey. If a jockey of his class says he can go, he can go. I'm not the least bit worried."
Yutaka Take
"(Recovering from a broken arm suffered on Nov. 23) There's still some pain, and I want to be in the best shape I can possibly be for the race. I've been doing the rehab work so I can ride in the Arima Kinen. I was fine last week, so I feel good. I think his workout went OK, not bad. There's no denying the quality of the horse, so if he runs to potential, we shouldn't have to worry about the result. It's his last race so I want him to race like the Samson we all know he can be."
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| Screen Hero (4yo, colt) |
Screen Hero |
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Yuichi Shikato (trainer)
"If we can win this one, he can become a true 'hero'. So we're up for it. His workouts have gone well, and he'll be just as fit as he was for the Japan Cup. He was in fantastic form for the Japan Cup and I was hoping he could maintain it for the Arima Kinen, and it's all worked out. It doesn't make him the strongest just because he won the Japan Cup. We're challengers here, but I can say with certainty that he's in the same form as he was for the Japan Cup."
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| Venture Nine (3yo, colt) |
Venture Nine |
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Tomokazu Shibasaki (exercise rider)
"The weight he's put on is all muscle. We increased his workload in training, to get him to sweat more. The jockey was impressed with the way he worked, but we're up against a great field. I hope he runs a race he can build on for next year; that's more important than thinking about winning here."
Yoshitomi Shibata
"He's had a lot of races recently, but he's bursting with energy. It helps that he's very easy to ride."
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