Gearing up for his second attempt at securing Group 1 glory in Japan, Victor The Winner got a first feel for Nakayama’s turf course on Wednesday morning (25 September) with jockey Joao Moreira in the plate for trainer Danny Shum.
Victor The Winner is one of two Hong Kong-trained runners readying for Sunday’s (29 September) G1 Sprinters Stakes (1200m) at Nakayama, a racetrack located in the Chiba Prefecture of the Greater Tokyo Area, while the other representative is Mugen, who exercised slowly alongside partner horse Island Surprise today.
“He’s (Victor The Winner) in very good shape, very healthy, he’s shining. Which is what any jockey would ask for – a horse that is expressing to me how he is at the moment. That was the first impression I had about him when I first saw him this morning.
“We went onto the track for the workout and he went along for a nice, beautiful breeze-up. He gave me such a nice feel, which does get me very excited to ride him in the race,” Moreira said.
Winner of the 2024 HK$13 million G1 Centenary Sprint Cup (1200m) at Sha Tin, Victor The Winner placed third on yielding ground in the 2024 G1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen (1200m) at Chukyo.
The turf home straight at Nakayama is a steep uphill, which is only 310m in length.
“I hope he can handle the track, also it’s a clockwise track. So, I do think he has the experience, and he is quite smart,” Shum said.