3:48 p.m. Let's learn from mistakes and hope I won't make the same mistake again. Also hope Cow will not either. Meanwhile, yeterday's races at Hanshin has been called off due to the typhoon and was announced to be held today however, this too has been postponed to tomorrow due to transport problems.

It has also been announced that Rey De Oro is going to enter Tenno-sho. About time. It seems Christophe continues to ride the horse, so their next race after Tenno-sho could be Arima Kinen, considering Christophe's schedule (he's riding Almond Eye for Japan Cup). Speaking of Tenno-sho, the trials for the race will be run this weekend on both eastern and western turf; Mainichi-Ohkan and Kyoto Dai-shoten.

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1:57 p.m. Net Keiba has not uploaded this weekend's races' entry forms yet assumingly, because the replacement races for last week's Hanshin hasn't finished. They are running today.

I can guess that Aerolithe would probabaly the most favored in Mainichi Ohkan, though. With Moreira on her back, it's almost definite. But I wouldn't bet on her win as there's too much risk. Every year there are a few older horses that become favored, while it's usually the 3-year-olds that perform better.

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5:03 p.m. It took half the week to have the entry forms of the weekend races uploaded onto netkeiba.com, but that is not what I'm complaining about. Ojuchosan has been announced to enter Nanbu Tokubetsu (Tokyo turf 2,400m) held on November 3rd.

Darn, why did they decide to do this? Are they so freaked out? If so, they shouldn't have set Arima Kinen as their goal in the first place. What are they going to say and do if Oju lost the next race? So disappointing.

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3:19 p.m. Learning from past results I think, is quite important as well as practical. So I've been to check out the past results of Mainichi Ohkan held this weekend, after confirming the most favored to be Aerolithe. Expected.

Think I've mentioned before that 3-year-olds annually perform better than the top favored horses in this race. Well, reviewing the past ten years' results, I would set the guidline on which 3-year-old to not buy. You should not buy 3-year-olds that hasn't even won a G3 race, they're simply not ready or don't have enough potential for upper grade races. Also you should avoid the ones that race from the rear, as there is almost no chance to reach to the top from such position.

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2:35 p.m. The announcement for barriers of Kyoto Dai-shoten is to be awaited, but Mainichi Ohkan's has been released so let's take a look.

Aerolithe has drawn pot number 9, Satono Arthur 4 and Stelvio, 5. Last year's Kikka-sho winner Kiseki has drawn 1. Because there are only 13 horses entered in this race, it would have been better for Aerolithe to draw inner posts. It would be quite interesting to see how Sounds Of Earth performs. His performance in Sapporo Kinen suggests the 7-year-old is getting back into shape.

Meanwhile, there will be an integrated G1 dirt race called Nanbu-hai held on local Morioka tracks Monday, with Le Vent Se Leve and Gold Dream racing against other big names like Nonkono Yume. Nonko drew post number 1, Gold Dream 7 and Le Vent Se Leve 12. Wonder which would win?

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1:45 p.m. Let me check out the barrier draw for Kyoto Dai-shoten, first. Cheval Grand is in post number 8, while Satono Diamond drew 2 and Bless Journey 3. Red Genova seems to be the most rising, but it would be interesting to see how Cheval and Diamond would perform.

As for Mainichi Ohkan, my key horse would be Stelvio. Don't think he would sweep up to the top, though it is likely for him to come in 2nd. On the wheel would be Keiai Nautique, Satono Arthur, Aerolithe, Stephanos and Sounds of Earth. Hope Cow won't forget to upload this week.

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4:39 p.m. Stelvio came in 2nd as I'd predicted, but Keiai Nauteque didn't perform as well assumingly because of his weight gain, although Stephanos had done his best.

I decided Stelvio as my key since horses shortening their distances can come up on the home stretch breaking through the pack if need be. However, if that was so, I should also have bought Kiseki instead of Satono Arthur for the same reason, especially when I knew the lap won't tighten. My call still needs to be brushed up a bit before the G1 series.

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5:28 p.m. Although it was a holiday today, Kyoto Dai-shoten has been run as mentioned before.

Found it interesting that Satono Diamond has won, but the more encouraging fact was that my key horse Red Genova has come in 2nd. Rider Ikezoe has struggled to find his course on the last stretch however, Genova might have beaten Diamond if it had been more smooth. Cheval Grand has lost in 4th place, but that was expected and I now know his crew are good learners.

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2:49 p.m. Personally, I think Satono Diamond's performance was far from impressive although the headlines are screaming his come back. If the horse was really back in his prime condition, he would probably have wrapped up the last 3 furlongs in 33.9 seconds. And what I'm afraid of is that this might be his best performance for now meaning, there isn't much room for the horse's performance to improve after Kyoto Dai-shoten.

Given that Satono Diamond's next race will be Japan Cup, I have a feeling that he would not win in his next race. On the other hand, Cheval Grand has a chance to get better as he did last year in the same schedule, while Red Genova stays fresh to face Queen Elizabeth Cup more than 4 weeks ahead.

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2:05 p.m. A couple of news about retiring horses. The 2015 Arima Kinen winner Gold Actor has been announced to retire as well as Seewind. last year's Tanabata-sho winner. It's sad to watch a horse like Gold Actor go, but then no living creature can beat time. Sending my best wishes for his future as a stallion.

Meanwhile, Kiseki who came in 2nd in Mainichi Ohkan has finally be decided to enter Tenno-sho (autumn). The horse's crew have been aiming longer distance though have now changed their course to a middle range distance, seeing Kiseki's performance in Mainichi Ohkan. Yeah, think that would be better for the horse.

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3:47 p.m. Following the retirement news, I've read an article about Danon Premium entering Tennno-sho (!!).

It is not unusual for a 3-year-old to enter Tenno-sho since the distance of Kikka-sho is considered too long for many horses. It's jus that I hadn't thought of the possibility up until now so the news came as a little surprise for me.

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2:33 p.m. It's announced! The barrier draw for Shuka-sho this weekend has been announced! Excitement is building up.

Lathyros in post number 1, Cantabile in 2, Scarlet Color in 3, Randonnee in 4, Salacia in 5, Pioneer Bio in 6, Lucky Lilac in 7, Tosen Bless in 8, Satono Garnet in 9, All For Love in 10, Almond Eye in 11, Oscar Ruby in 12, Mikki Charm in 13, Gorgeous Lunch in 14, Harlem Line in 15, Primo Scene in 16, Sayakachan in 17 and Dancar in 18. Not a bad draw for Almond Eye whilst Lucky Lilac might have needed an inner post to beat her rival.

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2:55 p.m. Okay, my key horse is Almond Eye not to mention. One cannot go against that horse. I assure you she'll be the triple crown winner and might even earn herself another extra crown in Japan Cup.

I'm not so sure whether I'll buy a wheel, since it would be a match between Lucky Lilac, Cantabile, and Salacia for the 2nd and 3rd prize. Dancar may have a slight chance for 3rd, but you see, Mirco is not the almighty.

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4:48 p.m. So we've witnessed the fifth fillie triple crown winner just born. It's amazing that two out of five fillie triple crown winners are from the same Kunieda stable. I've had the honor of seeing him face to face though only for a short time before, and had the impression that he was a sensible guy. My congrats to him and all his staff.

I should have included Mikki Charm in my call, though. I've left my notes at my work place so I can't be sure why I cut her out, but I probably missed too pick up the fact that she had a 2-and-a-half-month's interval after her tough races in Hokkaido. Must not make the same miss for Kikka-sho, since 3-year-olds that have experienced tough races during the summer tend to perform well in autumn, given that their damage is taken care of.

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2:54 p.m. Oh my god. I've just checked out the entry form for Kikka-sho and discovered that Wagnerian's name wasn't on it.

With a pang of suspicion, I went to check out the entry form for Tenno-sho a week ahead. And there he was... Aaaall right, so one rival down for Kikka-sho, huh?

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1:58 p.m. Whaaaaaat!? Wagnerian is scratching off!?

It made the headlines that this year's Japanese D'erby horse Wagnerian is scratching off from Tenno-sho. It was only yesterday that I've been excited he was entering Tenno-sho instead of Kikka-sho and now this. Raising hopes and then dropping them down... Oh yeah, he was a Deep Impact descendant.

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4:07 p.m. Since Wagnerian is not going to run, I wondered who would be the most favored and checked the expected odds list only to find that Etario was the most favored. Well, he came in 2nd behind Wagnerian in Kobe Shinbun-hai which is a trial race for Kikka-sho.

Epoca d'Oro who stumbled in the same race to lag behind and finish 4th place is currently the 3rd favored in expected win odds. But there's a famous old saying in Japanese horse racing that Satsuki-sho winners have the advantage in Kikka-sho.

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3:28 p.m. The barriers for Kikka-sho has been announced so let's go over it.

Aithon is in post number 1, Grail is in 2, Blast Onepiece is in 3, Gnerale Uno is in 4, Epoca d'Oro is in 5, Meisho Tekkon is in 6, You Can Smile is in 7, Kafuji Vanguard is in 8, Etario is in 9, African Gold is in 10, Cosmic Force in 11, Fierment in 12, Time Flyer in 13, Grandiose in 14, Oken Moon in 15, Stay Foolish in 16, Chardonnay Gold in 17 and Glory Vase in 18. Humph. It's always a task to put the Japanese Katakana names into English spelling.

Anyway, my first impression of the draw. Inner posts are good for Grail and Epoca d'Oro, though Grail would need a faster lap than his previous race. Blast Onepiece might not like to get squashed in the pack, so the post he drew might be a disadvantage depending on the lap. Other than that, Fierment has drawn a good post considering he's a Deep Impact descendant.

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2:33 p.m. Of course Kikka-sho is important but before Kikka-sho, there's another important race run on Saturday. Fuji Stakes, a prep race for Mile Championship.

Interesting members have entered this race aiming the autumn mile G1, though personally my interest is on Gendarme. He's drawn the outmost post however, if Yutaka is going to ride him leaving Air Spinel aside, I would love to see how the horse will perform in his first mile race against the older boys.

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3:13 p.m. So my call for Kikka-sho.

The key would be Blast Onepiece. I've learned watching the Japanese D'erby that the horse has got potential and, his background tells me he has enough stamina to get over the long ride of 3,000 meters. Not to mention I wanted to push Epoca d'Oro. But I've decided to keep him on the wheel from a slight risk in the distance. Others on the wheel would be Grail, Etario and Fierment. Etario on the brink of being cut out.

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9:31 p.m. I did think the lap would be slow, yes. But not that slow... The first 3 furlongs were 37.2 seconds and the first 1,000 meters 62.7. No wonder it became an instantaneous speed contest from the last corner.

Power and stamina type have all sank because they couldn't make use of either their toughness nor power. Will go to check out Tozaki's coment after ther race. He must have known there'd be no chance if it became an instantaneous speed match.

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2:55 p.m. Rider of Epoca d'Oro Tozaki's comment after the race mentioned the possibility of the distance being too long for the horse. Who would be convinced after the performance of this year's D'erby? Yes, the distance has been expanded for another two furlongs, but that only cannot be the reason for losing way behind in 8th place.

Well, we're having the autumn Tenno-sho this week although the number of horses entered is rather disappointing for a middle range G1. Still, I've been warming up a method since summer waiting for the first non-classical autumn G1. To heaven or to hell, no one knows.

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4:17 p.m. I'm disappointed to say that there are only 14 horses competeing in this week's Tenno-sho. Yes, disappointeing indeed.

It's been about twenty or so years since I'd last seen such a small-pack Tenno-sho, when Silence Suzuka was met by accident during the race. I blame the 5-year-olds for this. They should be in the center of this race while there are only 3 of them entered Makahiki, Mikki Rocket and Vivlos with one being a mare.

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1:45 p.m. As I look through the entered members of Tenno-sho, I see that there aren't any horses that race up front. That means it could become another slow-lapped instantaneous speed contest...

The horses that drew inner post numbers would have the advantage if the lap actually does slacken and, this advantage would grow even bigger considering the number of horses in the race. Sigh.

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3:39 p.m. Tenno-sho is not a classical race but the barriers have already been announced, so let's take a look.

Stephanos in post number 1, Black Moon in 2, Vivlos in 3, Rey De Oro in 4, Suave Richard in 5, makahiki in 6, Al Ain in 7, Danburite in 8, Sungrazer in 9, Kiseki in 10, Mikki Rocket in 11, Sakura Empereur in 12 and Action Star in 13. Oh yes, Wagnerian has scratched off so it's one horse less.

Not to mention my excitement and interest have shrunk down to pea size, and I'm having trouble focusing on the racing form.

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2:48 p.m. It looks like Makahiki has taken over Rey De Oro on the expected win odds chart. Currently, Makahiki's win odds is displayed as 3.0 to 1 while Rey De Oro's is 8.1 to 1. Quite a change from yesterday.

Perhaps the news of Rey De Oro's condition not being perfect might be the reason, but you never know why. Well, I'll have to check with our training squad for more details anyway.

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2:15 p.m. I admit I wasn't quite that focused since I've lost half of my interest in the race, but here's my call for Tenno-sho (autaumn).

My key horse is Suave Richard. Think he can do well if his condition is perpared. On the wheel would be Vivlos, Sungrazer, maybe Makahiki, and Sakura Epereur. Rey De Oro, I'm undecided since All Comer champions haven't been performing well in Tenno-sho as far as I can remember.

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9:54 p.m. Let me give you my excuse if I may that I couldn't quite believe in my own method. That's why I'd keyed Suave Richard, only to have been bumped into by damn Makahiki at the start.

Wonder why it wasn't inquired.

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3:51 p.m. I cannot be drooping all day just because I couldn't believe in myself and have lost Tenno-sho. Why, because I'm bound to go out again this weekend when I'd ususally stay home while the JBC races are run.

Annually, I've been enjoying the JBC races at home via my TV screen very much relaxed, as I don't buy betting tickets for them. However, stupid Cow has ignited Mr. N-jima and then one thing led to another to eventually agree on meeting again this weekend for the JBC races... Well, one of the reasons was that they're going to be held at Kyoto tracks, not the local dirt tracks as usual.

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2:46 p.m. I've briefed through the entry forms for this weekend's JBC races and the thing is, that there are actually 3 integrated G1 races run: JBC Sprint, JBC Classic, and JBC Ladys' Classic, which will be held respectively as race 10, 11 and 12 on Kyoyo tracks.

That means I have to call three races, eh? And how am I going to do that when I'm struggling with just one?

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5:05 p.m. What I don't like about calling JBC races is that because they're held on different tracks every year, it's hard for me to deduce necessary information from the past results. I thought maybe I could make use of my Kyoto dirt 1800m data stock this year, and then the distance for JBC Clasics turn out to be 1900 meters...

Not that the features change drastically, but 100 meter's extension sometimes do make a difference.

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