"Among these eighteen Racehorses, quite a few could choose to take the lead."
"And how the favored Racehorses choose to run will be one of the highlights today."
The gates opened!
Charge-!
At the sound of the Starting Stalls opening, all eighteen racehorses burst out of their stalls.
Most of the Racehorses on the inside accelerated as fast as they could, while those on the outside began moving inward, trying to block the inside runners' path.
The first two turns of this 2,400-meter race were especially important!
"Just what we'd expect from Swiss Watch and Refined and Elegant, who both performed so well in the Satsuki Sho. They've secured excellent positions right out of the Starting Gate."
Securing such good starting positions in two Grade 1 races could only mean these two Racehorses were exceptionally good at claiming position.
Of course, their jockeys' decisive moves played a part too.
"But the Racehorses coming up on the outside are sticking close to those two, pinning them against the rail."
"Numbers seventeen and eighteen have also begun fighting for position."
"Neither the inside nor the outside of the Racecourse Track is in particularly good condition today."
"Nakayama Knight is in the middle of the pack, but doesn't seem interested in moving up."
"And our second favorite, Golden Masterpiece, has stayed fourth or fifth from the rear, with number one, Triumph Ballet, following behind."
The two commentators had been somewhat prepared to see Golden Masterpiece at the back this time. After all, Golden Masterpiece was one of the Racehorses everyone would be watching closely in this race.
Jockey Sasaki's unexpected switch to a Closer strategy had also frustrated quite a few jockeys' hopes of trapping Golden Masterpiece during the first half.
The greatest advantage of running as a Closer was avoiding being squeezed