Still Elusive

Ryan Moore came home third with Rush Attack this morning, leaving me on the 22 wins marker. To be fair, the hot pace probably didn't suit him, and although we started as favourite, the top three finishers were the three most fancied in the betting - even the third favourite held odds of 4.5:1! Until Phosphorus challenges Urawa, about the only other news of note is Kalliopeia arriving at Miho Training Centre, meaning the imminent start of another racing career...

PS. Having been able to study the Rush Attack race, it was the poor exit from the gate that blew things. The finish, however, was probably even more devastating than the debut one - boy, has this horse got some speed! Moving up to 1800m would probably be a good idea, but there's no doubt this particular pony has got what it takes.

Elusive Dreams

Courtesy Townsville Turf Club

Sonja Wiseman was awarded Townsville Turf Club 'Jockey Of The Year' today, and rode Pretty Gully in the race named to celebrate the fact. But even Sonja and a fired-up Pretty Gully (starting as favourite) couldn't do the business, and came home in fourth. Sadly, the Townsville folks had given the track a heavy dousing of water, and the poor horse hated the mud flying back in her face. Otherwise, you can guarantee the race was ours. Win #23 is proving to be very elusive...

Another Date

Phosphorus has been booked to run at Urawa in the 1400m C1 Class eighth race on the 19th, which will help complete his 'Nankan' education - he'll only have TCK left then, and he'll have raced at all the four Kanto NAR tracks. It would be nice, of course, if he could win, as he's won at Funabashi and Kawasaki, and I think he has the potential to be an all-rounder. Certainly, Yano-sensei - who clocked up his 600th win as a trainer the other day - wouldn't enter him if he didn't think the same way...

Meanwhile, today began with a superb clinic for Louis and 'Bugatti' with Miyaki-sensei - the pair enjoying the experience and learning a lot, as always. Three hours to go before Pretty Gully runs at Townsville, so time to get some work done after a mug of tea!

Book This One

Although the Morioka bash didn't come to fruition, it's been confirmed that Pop Label should be lining up at TCK on the 26th against JRA competition, which should be fun. Yuta Sato, ex-jockey turned trainer and all-round good guy, has been doing the training himself, and knowing the level of preparation he is capable of (most of Kawashima-sensei's legendary horses were entrusted to Yuta), this could be a really interesting test for Pop. We'll know once and for all if he'll rekindle the champion in him after this run! For sure, book a date in your diary to watch this one...

Masterful

Shun Ishizaki rode with a masterful touch at TCK tonight to guide Beat The Boarder to third place, despite the pair being far from fancied in a strong field. It was a truly superb run, with the horse looking good carrying a few more kilos, and some perfect timing from the jockey. In many ways, tonight's performance was even more impressive than the win they clocked up last time out. Brilliant!

Now we can look forward to Pretty Gully in the heat of Australia on Saturday, with a JRA race for Rush Attack added on Sunday. He runs in the mile opener at Tokyo-Fuchu with fellow Brit, Ryan Moore, in the saddle. As a result, I've got high hopes for both weekend warriors...

We've Got Two, Anyway...

Not much happening on the racing front, with all but one of the JRA horses on holiday - wish I could get a lengthy break for doing a few minutes work! The only worry amongst them is Single Cask. Like all the Carrot Club horses recently, her last race was awful, but she may at least have an excuse. Although there are no breakages, she's in pain, and it doesn't look good. This could be the end of her racing career, or the start of what could prove to be a lengthy rehabilitation session.

But at least Beat The Boarder is in NAR action tomorrow in the 8R at Tokyo's TCK track. Shun Ishizaki is in the saddle, so it should be an interesting race. And on Saturday, Pretty Gully runs Down Under. Sonja Wiseman takes the reins in a 1300m Open race at Townsville, which is definitely something to look forward to...