Before entering the starting stalls, Koichi had not wasted any energy or shown anything out of the ordinary.
Epiphaneia was obedient today, too, responding quickly to his instructions.
The spectators were also exceptionally enthusiastic today.
To everyone, a Derby winner was a horse of tremendous importance.
This was also the final race before these horses reached maturity.
During the warm-up, Koichi worked on getting used to Epiphaneia's rhythm.
It seemed Megumi Mitsumori had indeed kept Epiphaneia in excellent condition before he came to Tokyo. He was arguably much stronger than he had been at the Satsuki Sho.
That was certainly good news for him.
Their slow-paced front-running strategy had worked well at the Satsuki Sho, but it would be difficult to achieve the same effect in this race.
Listening to the waves of cheers, Koichi felt fresh strength welling up inside him.
Whether for himself, for Epiphaneia, or for the spectators supporting them.
He had to keep going in this race.
Epiphaneia began cantering around the track at Tokyo Racecourse.
He was fairly familiar with this place. His final race as a two-year-old had taken place here, though his jockey back then had been Kenichi Ikezoe.
By the time the commentator had nearly finished introducing them to the spectators, they had reached the starting stalls.
Ryuji Wada also spotted Koichi Sasaki.
He seemed to be doing all right now.
Compared with right after the previous race, his complexion was certainly much better. That last race had most likely taken too much out of him.
Kuga Kai hurried over to lead the horse, while Koichi took the opportunity to adjust his equipment.
It was almost time to begin.
After the staff checked everything once more, everyone began entering the starting stalls.
Naturally, Yutaka Take and Deep Bond went in first.
Their