Forever Young, who last year made history as the first ***** anese horse to win the Breeders' Cup Classic, vies for a rare repeat in the showpiece of the $34 million racing extravaganza at Keeneland on Saturday.
Trainer Yoshito Yahagi sounded a confident note after the well-traveled five-year-old enjoyed a "perfect gallop" on the Lexington, Kentucky, track on Wednesday in his final tuneup for the 1 1/4-mile, $7 million race.
"The horse is moving beautifully," Yahagi said. "I'm very satisfied. There is no concern about the horse's condition. He is very fresh."
Forever Young was installed as the 2-1 early favorite after drawing the fifth post, and Yahagi acknowledged that the challenge facing the two-time Saudi Cup-winner and jockey Ryusei Sakai is somewhat different this year as they try to follow Tiznow in 2000 and 2001 as the only repeat Classic winners.
"I think the quality of the rivals is the same as last year, but our position this year is quite different from last year," Yahagi said. "Last year, we have to take on the challenge to win the Breeders' Cup Classic. But this year, I think we are in the position that everybody is targeting us, so it's not quite easy to defend the ***** le."
#yahagi #young #repeat
Trainer Yoshito Yahagi sounded a confident note after the well-traveled five-year-old enjoyed a "perfect gallop" on the Lexington, Kentucky, track on Wednesday in his final tuneup for the 1 1/4-mile, $7 million race.
"The horse is moving beautifully," Yahagi said. "I'm very satisfied. There is no concern about the horse's condition. He is very fresh."
Forever Young was installed as the 2-1 early favorite after drawing the fifth post, and Yahagi acknowledged that the challenge facing the two-time Saudi Cup-winner and jockey Ryusei Sakai is somewhat different this year as they try to follow Tiznow in 2000 and 2001 as the only repeat Classic winners.
"I think the quality of the rivals is the same as last year, but our position this year is quite different from last year," Yahagi said. "Last year, we have to take on the challenge to win the Breeders' Cup Classic. But this year, I think we are in the position that everybody is targeting us, so it's not quite easy to defend the ***** le."
#yahagi #young #repeat
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