It was the day of the Japanese Oaks.
Although the fallout from Golden Masterpiece's race still lingered, no one would question Koichi over Tokyo's 2,400 meters.
He had won two Grade 1 races over that distance the previous year.
Yasuo Iwata had not been suspended for interference, but he had still chosen to head to Kyoto.
Meanwhile, the jockey lineup in Tokyo was as strong as it could get.
Yutaka Take, Yuichi Fukunaga, and Yuga Kawada were all there.
Kenichi Ikezoe and Ryuji Wada had gone to Kyoto instead. Getting results in Tokyo at this point was still rather difficult.
They were better off going to Kyoto Racecourse, where they might pick up a few more wins.
Koichi also spotted the Problem Child, Kosei Miura, there.
He was certainly a talented jockey, but his performance would decline year after year in the future.
At this point, he was still a Super Rookie.
"Sasaki, long time no see."
Yutaka Take took the initiative to greet him.
Koichi was getting closer and closer to 100 wins now.
"Good morning, Mr. Take."
Koichi nodded and greeted him in return.
Take would, of course, be riding the same horse as last time. It had finished fifth despite being the eleventh favorite, which was quite a respectable result.
Since Koichi also had rides on dirt that day, he had arrived very early.
After all this time, he felt that his familiarity with the Tokyo Dirt Track had improved considerably. He had spent so long there, after all.
"Nearly at 100 wins, aren't you?"
"Yes. I should be about there by the Derby next week."
Koichi nodded.
It would be a milestone in his career as a jockey, but his achievements were still a long way behind those of someone as unparalleled as Yutaka Take.
"Then