Forever Young covers five furlongs in 1:03, while T O Password completes four furlongs in 4:46.
In preparation for the May 4 Kentucky Derby (G1) at Churchill Downs, Forever Young and T O Password underwent their final preparations on April 30. The two Japanese competitors used very different strategies.
Working in tandem, Tomoya Ozasa's T O Password—the victor of the Japanese Road to the Derby and the unbeaten horse in his two career races—was credited with a crisp half-mile in a time of :46.80 over a track deemed "good" following the previous night's rain.
Forever Young, the undefeated UAE Derby (G2) winner, ran five furlongs in a far more leisurely 1:03 by working alone.
Plans were followed, and both workouts demonstrated what the horses' trainers believed their horses needed, four days before they tried to become the first Japanese victor of the American classic.
The horse that Daisuke Takayanagi trained, T O Password, is significantly less skilled, yet he exuded more energy both before and throughout his training. When placed down the backstretch behind his workmate, T O Saint Denis, a longshot entered in the May 3 Alysheba Stakes (G2), T O Password, wearing blinkers, was a little reactive to the morning conditions, intermittently turning and shying. However, he lowered his neck and fell into stride nicely.
"Yesterday I got on him the first time and he was a little spooky boy, but today with the company I didn't feel any problem, and he finished up really strong," stated Kazushi Kimura, a 24-year-old Japanese native who was recently recognized for his accomplishments at his main base, Woodbine, with his third straight Sovereign Award as Canada's finest jockey.
Although Kimura claimed that the piece was indeed six furlongs, Churchill clockers were unaware of his opening furlongs.
"We are gonna be going 14- or 15-second furlongs, which for North America is a little slow, but that's a common Japanese training style," Kimura stated. "Everything went well, and that's exactly what I wanted and what my trainer wanted. Everything went smoothly."
T O Password had been following his workmate for almost two furlongs when Kimura led him outside. The colt immediately accelerated, catching up and then taking a three-quarter length lead on the turn before Kimura pulled him back in. T O Password regained the lead at the wire and eventually passed T O Saint Denis on the gallop out, thanks to a little prodding in the lane from Kimura. Churchill's clocker gave the following fractions: 23.80, 46.80, and out five furlongs in 59.60.
"He only ran two races in Japan and he went to lead and just got to the wire, so I wanted to teach some from behind so he gets the kickback. I didn't feel any problem with that, so it's all a good sign," Kimura noted. "I just tried to get some kickback from the company and then swing out and cruise up."
Kimura believes he has a better chance this year after riding Mandarin Hero to a 12th-place finish in the Kentucky Derby the previous year.
"I'm trying to shock the world. Today (T O Password) finished up strong, and even after the wire he still kept going well. I am feeling no problem with the distance. He might be green, but he has potential."
In a time of :47, stablemate T O Saint Denis was given credit for four furlongs. In 22 races, the 5-year-old Kitasan Black horse has won twice.
Compared to T O Password, Undefeated Forever Young, who was trained by Yoshito Yahagi for owner Susumu Fujita, has a more subdued disposition. He strolled calmly down the outer rail to the front side, walking past dozens of onlookers within a few feet of him. He only reacted once, when a group of delighted kids started jumping and waving their hands at him.
Forever Young's assistant trainer and exercise rider, Yusaku Oka, stated that evaluating Forever Young's growth and movement was the main goal of his last Derby work. The fractions for the task were 1:16.80 for the first six furlongs then 14:27, 39.60, and 1:03.
"We had a good breeze today, so for me, it is a relief to be prepared for racing. ... Of course I have confidence, because Forever Young has never lost. But Japanese horse has never won the Kentucky Derby, so (the) confidence side is hard to judge."