By the time the jockeys reacted, it was clearly too late to block him.
He had pulled off a Drainage-Channel Turn.
This was horse racing, not motor racing!
Still, they all admired Koichi Sasaki's move. Winning a race sometimes meant taking an unconventional approach.
And that was exactly what Koichi was doing.
"Gold Ship has charged straight up the inside! What a bold choice by Koichi Sasaki!"
"World Ace and Gorgeous Glory are also charging up from the rear!"
The commentators' voices rose with excitement.
Yuichi Fukunaga, who had also been at the back, had clearly chosen a different approach, charging up the outside instead.
He had covered a little extra ground, but the results were still quite good.
Making a move before this Racecourse Track was perfectly normal, too.
Nakayama Racecourse's final Racecourse Track was simply too difficult—not only short, but uphill as well. Getting started early benefited both horse and jockey.
Ooooh-!
The spectators could not help rising excitedly to their feet, cheering in waves.
Passing all seventeen!
This was the thrilling race they had wanted to see. No one had expected Gold Ship, whom they had written off, to charge up from dead last, with no sign of slowing down.
A great deal of mud was kicked into the air on the Racecourse Track by Gold Ship.
The arcs of flying mud alone showed just how powerful Gold Ship was.
Gold Ship's speed gradually climbed as well.
Pull out!
Once they had cleared the turn, Koichi immediately guided Gold Ship outward, away from the muddy footing.
Powerful as Gold Ship was, there was no sense wasting stamina by staying on the inside.
They had achieved their goal of overtaking on the turn, so there was no need to keep hugging the rail like Yuga Kawada.
Before long,