Once the interview was over, it was time for photos, and Koichi still had another race to ride.
After the photos were taken, the owner, Shimakawa, spent a long time earnestly talking to Koichi, all while throwing meaningful glances at Tetsuya Futawatari.
The upcoming Arima Kinen was crucial.
"Sasaki, you probably already know that the Sunday Club will definitely have someone contact you after this race. I have some connections with the Shadai Line myself."
Shimakawa patted him on the shoulder.
Only with the support of a major club and the Shadai Line's ranches could he truly have a future.
"I'll still need to go back and discuss this. After all..."
Koichi scratched his head awkwardly.
Whatever else might be said, he owed his current fame to Golden Masterpiece.
Now that the Arima Kinen had suddenly come up, it felt wrong to ride Japan Jordan instead of partnering with Golden Masterpiece.
He would have to see what the Young Lady thought. After all, Golden Masterpiece would have no shortage of good jockeys to ride him.
If word got out now, other jockeys would surely scramble to put their names forward.
"Mm, give it some more thought. There have been plenty of Triple Crown Winners throughout history, but only two horses have won the Autumn Triple Crown."
With that, Shimakawa turned and left.
With his current connections, finding a few good jockeys certainly would not be a problem, but he still felt that pairing Japan Jordan with Koichi Sasaki was the right choice.
"All right."
Koichi nodded, then breathed a sigh of relief once Shimakawa had left.
This really was something he would have to think through carefully.
Japan Jordan's Horse Owner and the Young Lady both surely wanted first place in the Arima Kinen, but there could only be one