Next Time!

It's ironic that I couldn't get across to see Phosphorus win on Thursday, but having found the time to go and support Pop Label yesterday, came away from the track more than a bit disappointed. It was a strange race, with a bad start, and then a bright spell followed by an anti-climax. Mika-san just gave up, as the top three had disappeared in a fight of their own, and brought him home in sixth. The fact that Yuta Sato was happy enough, as was his groom, and the fact that 1800m is being considered for the next race (a longer distance) has to be a good sign, though, for if there were fears over power and stamina, you wouldn't be thinking that way. Even though he looked superb in the paddock (as you can see in the picture), at the end of the day, the recovery from injury was a very long one - the road to full race fitness will be, too...

The next NAR race will be Beat The Boarder at TCK on the 22nd - let's hope she gets a decent gate draw this time, as her run of bad luck has been unbelievable. She lines up for the 1400m 7R, assuming the swelling from an infected cut has gone down fully. As an aside, the new Vermilion kid seems to be doing very well.

Meanwhile, Irish Harp is out in JRA action at Chukyo today. It's Fuma Matsuwaka in the saddle again for this 1400m dirt race, and I'm just hoping he does a better job than last time - a lot better. Belle Plage and Tenshinramman should be racing at Nakayama on the 25th, both looking for a third victory, while Eclat De Reve is set to make her debut on the same day at Chukyo. The latter is a little munchkin, so it will be interesting to see how she performs.

Miracle Rouge is going to be timed this weekend, but even if she does race next weekend, she's been on holiday that long, I doubt whether she'll remember what to do - a disaster in the making. J'ai Un Reve is struggling with his gate training, which is hardly an ideal situation, and the last thing you want to hear after a catalogue of setbacks in a horse that cost 80,000,000 yen! At least the yearlings are supposed to be doing well.