Magic Key V2

Courtesy Miho Long

At last, some long overdue good news on the Japanese racing front - a win for Magic Key, being her second, and my 60th overall. Although the decent prize money - being a "tokubetsu" race - is almost as much as Million Ways (with the same trainer) has won in its career so far, as well as over twice what Another Door has managed to get after eight attempts, it is still only four-and-a-half months of running costs, and one should not forget that the thing was off for nine months this year and ran only once last year. This horse owes me, and owes me big, so I'm not going to be doing cartwheels around the room or breaking open bottles of champagne for a long time yet - an injury free season with a few more good results in the bag might cheer me up, but I'm afraid I've simply been let down by too many for too long now to bounce back into the enthusiasm zone after one win, for I am not a rubber ball. Anyone that knows me well will tell you that I am by and large an understanding type that gives things a fair chance, but once I have been annoyed or feel I've been slighted, repairing the damage is not an easy process. That said, at least I saw some effort today, especially from young Nakano-kun, who didn't panic under constant pressure from Mori-kun and being forced to keep the pace up by Harita-kun in the early stages. My hearty and sincere congratulations on the win. Now keep them coming!

PS. A mile seems just a touch too far for Magic Key - I'd say the 1500m distance races would be more suitable, as the horse looked quite tired at the end having watched the replay again. That was not the kind of domination I'm sure the trainer and Sunday TC would have wished for - in fact, it was a little too close for comfort at the finish line. What happens next is important. Today was simply about starting to claw back a lost season.