144th Autumn Emperor's Cup Turf, left-handed, 2,000 m Weather: cloudy Turf: good Post time: 15:40
"Sorry for the wait, everyone. All eighteen horses have entered the gates safely."
"The 144th Autumn Emperor's Cup begins now!"
The band beside the track began playing the Autumn Tenno Sho's signature tune.
The noisy spectators all turned their attention to the Starting Stalls.
At last, the first leg of the autumn triple crown was about to begin!
Whoosh-
Inside the Starting Stall, Koichi let out a soft breath, then smiled at Ryuji Wada beside him.
He had to take this race seriously.
Whether he could prove himself again depended on his performance here.
Stamp!
Japan Jordan stamped hard on the ground twice inside the Starting Stall.
The horse was already getting impatient.
The jockeys in the other Starting Stalls also began readying themselves.
The first turn in a two-thousand-meter race was crucial.
The gates opened!
Clack, clack, clack-
With a series of rattling sounds, all eighteen horses burst out of the Starting Stalls.
But Silport, ridden by Masayoshi Ubaname, broke from Starting Stall One.
The horse shot ahead first.
Starting closest to the rail, he had no need to worry about his route.
He only needed to charge forward.
Unlike his closer strategy in the Kikuka Sho, Masayoshi Ubaname chose to take the lead and run.
As long as he could break away, securing a place near the front should be no problem.
"Silport breaks first from Starting Stall One and immediately opens up a two-length lead over the pack."
"We didn't expect Masayoshi Ubaname to go straight for a breakaway."
The commentator quickly analyzed the unfolding race.
That starting speed was fast indeed.
But breaking away from these contenders would still be difficult.
"Two lengths behind is last year's Kikuka Sho