With Gold Ship and Epiphaneia both resting, Koichi focused most of his attention on Man o' War.
Man o' War's race had also been decided.
A 1,600-meter Newcomer Race for two-year-olds at Chukyo in the first week of July.
The major central racecourses had all closed for July, leaving mostly smaller central racecourses open.
That meant Koichi also needed to head over early to find some riding engagements.
But no matter what, Man o' War's race was his top priority. After all, this would be their first race together.
Koichi set off fairly early as well.
Man o' War would complete his final workout gallop right at Chukyo Racecourse and prepare for the upcoming Newcomer Race there.
Chukyo Racecourse had just been renovated, so Koichi needed to get used to it too.
He rarely visited these racecourses.
The main reason they had chosen this race was that it suited them perfectly, both in terms of the surface and the distance.
The only drawback was the heat. It was the sixth race on the card, putting the start at around one in the afternoon.
"How did it feel?"
"Hot. That's about the only thing I felt."
Koichi had just taken Man o' War for a lap around the track at Chukyo Racecourse.
"The temperature keeps climbing lately. After this race, he'll probably need another break."
Saki Ikegami nodded, wearing sunglasses.
The prize money from a single Newcomer Race would be enough to qualify him for a two-year-old graded stakes race later.
Of course, to be safe, they could also run him in an open-class race first.
But they clearly had no plans to do that right now.
"Isn't our schedule for the next few weeks a little all over the place?"
Koichi couldn't help asking.
Simply put, he would be shuttling