Chapter 55. Friendship and Recognition Forged in Battle
Today's main event was the 1000-meter turf G1 King's Stand Stakes. In this race, the horse Shuta An was riding did not belong to André Fabre, but was Wolfhound, trained by Gosden. The Horse Owner was Sheikh Bin Rashid Mohammed of Dubai, whom André Fabre was so eager to introduce Shuta An to.
"Is Gosden that fast?" André Fabre muttered inwardly when he saw the race card.
Because he had recently been focused on adjusting his own racehorses, he had not paid much attention to the other horses Shuta An would be riding. When he saw Shuta An wearing the red silks of that Horse Owner, a sense of urgency immediately welled up in his heart.
"After the Royal Ascot race days are over, I'll recommend him immediately," André Fabre thought.
Although the King's Stand Stakes was a G1 major race, it was very much in line with the European style, with a total of only 8 horses participating. In Japan, it would be a dream to have a G1 race without a double-digit number of participants.
However, even with fewer participants, the field was generally not too crowded, and accidents were less likely to occur. Even so, Shuta An did not dare let his guard down at all. Partly because his partner, Wolfhound, was the overwhelming favorite in this race, with odds soaring to EVS, a rare situation.
On the other hand, Thierry Jarnet would also be participating in this race, riding a racehorse named Elbio. Although this horse was not popular, considering that Thierry Jarnet was in the saddle, the young man would never relax.
After entering the gate, Shuta An glanced at Thierry Jarnet and found that the other party was also staring at him.
"You are strong," Thierry Jarnet said.
To the young man's surprise, he used clumsy Japanese.
Shuta An did not respond. After being jointly targeted earlier, he was not a Bodhisattva, and naturally still harbored some anger.
Thierry Jarnet understood Shuta An's refusal to respond and turned his head back.
"Although Elbio is not as strong as Wolfhound, I understand Ascot better than you," Thierry Jarnet thought. "I will not give you the victory in today's main race!"
As Shuta An made his final preparations in the gate, he hesitated slightly.
"Since it's a 1000-meter turf lightning battle, should I let Wolfhound perform a super-fast start here?"
If he did so, the advantage would be that Wolfhound could seize an early lead of one horse length. If the gap was sufficient, Shuta An would have the leeway to block Elbio and Thierry Jarnet.
However, the disadvantage was that Wolfhound was a pure sprinter. If she ran too fast in the early stages, considering that Ascot Racecourse was currently listed as heavy ground, it was very possible that she would have no finishing burst left at the end and lose the race because of it.
After much thought, Shuta An decided to play it safe.
"Even if I find an opportunity to block Elbio, Thierry Jarnet might just crash into me forcefully, just like I did earlier today."
The young man had no doubt about his determination—
On the sidelines, André Fabre and Yoshida Katsumi were also talking about Shuta An.
Yoshida Katsumi could clearly sense that André Fabre intended to keep Shuta An in Europe, so he frequently boasted about his close relationship with him.
Although André Fabre heard all of this, he did not care much.
In his eyes, as long as he gave Shuta An opportunities to ride powerful and great racehorses in Europe, a talented jockey like him, who surely possessed dreams and ambitions, would definitely be tempted.
"Which genius jockey would have the courage to give up the resources of the Great Sheikh?"
André Fabre had even heard that Bin Rashid Mohammed intended to consolidate his racing business into a group. At that time, he would likely invite powerful jockeys from all over the world to become the main riders of his racehorses.
Just imagining such a scene made André Fabre, who was not even a jockey himself, feel excited.
Just as the race was about to start, Wolfhound's Trainer, Gosden, came over and lightly punched André Fabre.
"It's not me saying this, André Fabre. You invite people to Ascot, but then I have to invite them to ride in the main race. Don't tell me you don't have any main racehorses this year?"
"Gosden, when you say that, I'd think you won the Epsom Oaks," André Fabre retorted with a smile. "Don't worry, I've already prepared Arcangues, the winner of last year's Prix d'Ispahan, and Zieten for the Eclipse Stakes and July Cup for Shuta-kun."
"You're not preparing a horse for him to ride in the Epsom Derby?" Gosden raised an eyebrow. "If you're not, then I'll invite him to ride in the Epsom Derby."
"You can try."
André Fabre spread his hands.
"You wouldn't happen to not know that Mr. Shuta is riding Japan's Triple Crown winner in the Epsom Derby, would you?"
"Japan's Triple Crown winner—"
Gosden's mouth twitched.
He had seen Japanese racehorses on European Racecourses before. That Japanese Derby horse called Sirius Symboli had campaigned in Europe for two years, and his performance could only be described as mediocre.
Even if a Triple Crown winner should be stronger than a Derby winner, in Gosden's imagination, his performance at Ascot Racecourse should not be much stronger.
Yoshida Katsumi could see that Gosden was not very optimistic about Tokai Teio, so he reminded him
"Tokai Teio has extensive overseas expedition experience. He won the Prix Ganay last year, and this year he also won the Queen Elizabeth Stakes in Australia."
"Oh~ that's not bad."
Upon hearing this, Gosden dug up memories of last year's Prix Ganay from his mind and raised an eyebrow.
"If he maintains that performance from the Prix Ganay, he should have no problem finishing in the top five in the Epsom Derby."
Although the Prix Ganay and the Epsom Derby were both G1 races, there was still a gap between G1s. Just from the name alone, it was clear what status the Epsom Derby held in the UK.
As for the Prix Ganay—
Other than being held at Longchamp Racecourse to test adaptability to Longchamp Racecourse and pave the way for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, it did not possess much status.
Hearing this, Yoshida Katsumi hoped that Mr. Shuta would work even harder and win the Epsom Derby with Tokai Teio.
Although doing so would make Tokai Teio's stud fee even more expensive, which was not good news for Shadai Group.
"Click!"
The gates sprang open in perfect unison.
Shuta An, riding Wolfhound, got away cleanly. Considering that this race was only 1000 meters, Shuta An had no intention of conserving too much energy. The several dozen minutes between races would be more than enough for him to recover. However, taking into account that the intensity of his pushing would also affect the horse's judgment when accelerating, the young man chose not to push at full strength right from the start.
Thierry Jarnet and Elbio's break was not particularly impressive either, but under Thierry Jarnet's strong urging, Elbio barely managed to keep pace with Wolfhound.
Thierry Jarnet turned his head and glanced at Shuta An.
"You're not the only one who can push hard over long distances!"
After turning his head back, he immediately increased the intensity of his pushing, causing Shuta An to involuntarily glance over several times.
"He's already pushing this hard less than fifty meters after the start. Can he really keep it up all the way to the finish?"
The young man secretly grumbled.
Thierry Jarnet, however, showed no concern for stamina whatsoever. He continued maintaining that level of intensity. Elbio likewise maintained his pace, running neck and neck with Wolfhound.
As they gradually approached the latter half of the race, Shuta An also increased his pushing intensity slightly. He had already noticed that Elbio was beginning to edge away from Wolfhound.
In a sprint race, Shuta An did not consider that an acceptable development.
"I can't let Elbio open up more than a one-length advantage."
Holding firmly to that judgment, the young man remained ready to draw his whip and urge Wolfhound forward at any moment.
Merely by listening to the rhythm of Wolfhound's hoofbeats, Thierry Jarnet could tell that Shuta An was gradually increasing his effort as well.
"He hasn't even fully recovered to his peak condition yet, and his recovery speed is already this outrageous?"
A trace of surprise flashed through Thierry Jarnet's mind.
"If you can start pushing at full strength from here, then perhaps that fellow Gosden will regret retiring this year after watching this race."
By now, Thierry Jarnet and Elbio had already moved to the front of the field. He quickly withdrew his attention from Shuta An.
"I should focus on my own race."
He had no intention of losing to Shuta An while giving everything he had.
Although Elbio was not among the popular picks, Thierry Jarnet firmly believed that his partner possessed the ability to win.
"Odds don't explain everything. Victory alone is the ultimate truth."
Entering the final straight, they were about to face an extra-long Slope Road.
This was also the most classic section of Ascot Racecourse.
Over the past few days, Shuta An had experienced this stretch dozens of times. Regardless of a horse's class, their speed would inevitably decrease here. The young man estimated that even if Tokai Teio were here, he probably would not be able to maintain his speed.
"I'll have to pay attention during the Epsom Derby and keep a close eye on the track conditions that day as well."
After racing in Europe for the past several days, Shuta An had already noticed that the pace of races here differed greatly from Japan.
However, this tendency was actually more favorable for Tokai Teio.
The early pace in European races was slower.
"Thinking about it that way, as long as Teio can adapt to the turf of European racecourses, he'll definitely feel right at home here."
Shuta An quickly snapped himself back to reality.
"This is the Queen Elizabeth Stakes. This isn't the time to be distracted!"
As Wolfhound stepped onto Ascot Racecourse's extra-long Slope Road, her speed visibly dropped.
However, the other seven horses in the race experienced the same thing.
Even Elbio, under Thierry Jarnet, slowed down more dramatically than Wolfhound.
"It has to be said, for the odds to be as low as EVS, Wolfhound's strength is truly recognized by everyone."
Shuta An immediately increased his pushing intensity.
His goal was not to make Wolfhound accelerate immediately, but rather to minimize her stamina loss while climbing the Slope Road.
"The track conditions at Ascot are terrible today. Later on, it'll definitely come down to whoever can push the hardest."
The young man narrowed his eyes.
"So unless something unexpected happens, this is going to become a duel between Thierry Jarnet and me."
The moment he reached that conclusion, even more strength surged through his body.
Even if this Queen Elizabeth Stakes was not a G1 race, he had no intention of losing here.
As Shuta An increased his effort, Wolfhound gradually began closing the gap on Elbio.
"Good. Maintain this speed differential, and by the time we cross the finish line, there should be enough room to pull three lengths clear of Elbio."
As a professional jockey, Shuta An naturally dared to make such judgments in advance.
But in the very next moment, his pupils contracted sharply.
"Thierry Jarnet, what are you doing?"
Thierry Jarnet suddenly drew his whip and delivered a left-handed forehand strike to Elbio. Under that single strike, Elbio immediately drifted to the right and closed in on Wolfhound.
At first, Shuta An thought Thierry Jarnet intended to force Elbio into Wolfhound, creating contact to disrupt Wolfhound's rhythm.
But he quickly realized he had completely misunderstood Thierry Jarnet's intention.
Because the moment Elbio drew close to Wolfhound, the mare, who had already begun to tire, suddenly had her fighting spirit reignited.
The scene immediately reminded Shuta An of Obey Your Master's tactics against Tamamo Cross in the Dream World.
Although Oguri had ultimately won that race, the tactic itself had been extraordinarily clever, and the young man remembered it vividly.
"What incredible on-the-spot judgment."
Shuta An could not help but praise him inwardly.
"But it doesn't matter. Wolfhound's fighting spirit should have been ignited as well."
"Now it's simply the two of us fighting head-on!"
Sure enough, when they reached the final hundred meters, Wolfhound and Elbio had already pulled at least two lengths clear of the rest of the field.
The race had unmistakably become a direct showdown between the two.
"As expected of Thierry Jarnet—"
Yoshida Katsumi could not help but praise him inwardly as well.
"To ride a weaker horse like Elbio and still match Wolfhound stride for stride without falling behind. In Japan, there's absolutely no jockey capable of taking a weaker horse and pushing Shuta-kun this far."
At this point, neither Shuta An nor Thierry Jarnet had room to think about anything else.
Shuta An continuously pushed himself, desperately trying to recapture that feeling of absolute concentration, as though he were breaking through an invisible wall.
Meanwhile, Thierry Jarnet had also wagered everything he possessed on this race.
"ALMOST PERFECTLY SYNCHRONIZED PUSHING RHYTHMS!"
"ALMOST IDENTICAL RANGES OF MOTION!"
"ALMOST IDENTICAL SPEEDS!"
"WOLFHOUND AND ELBIO ARE CHARGING TOWARD THE FINISH LINE SIDE BY SIDE!"
The commentator's voice rang throughout the racecourse.
"UNBELIEVABLE!"
"WOLFHOUND AND ELBIO STILL CANNOT BE SEPARATED!"
"WOLFHOUND!"
"ELBIO!"
"SHUTA AN!"
"THIERRY JARNET!"
On the sidelines, Gosden clenched his fists tightly.
His legs trembled visibly from tension.
Yoshida Katsumi had nearly forgotten how to breathe.
High above, Her Majesty the Queen stared intently at the finish line.
Throughout Ascot Racecourse, the grandstands had erupted into a frenzy over this rare and fiercely contested one-on-one duel.
"THEY CROSS THE FINISH LINE TOGETHER!"
"WHO WON?!"
"WE'LL NEED A SLOW-MOTION REPLAY!!"
The commentator practically roared.
Yet on the track itself, Shuta An and Thierry Jarnet shared the same thought without needing to say a word.
"It should be a dead heat."
As he gradually pulled on the reins to slow his partner down, Thierry Jarnet extended his right hand and formed a fist.
Feeling a trace of unwillingness at failing to secure an outright victory despite riding the overwhelming favorite, Shuta An noticed the gesture from the corner of his eye.
A wry smile appeared on his face.
He raised his own fist and bumped it against Thierry Jarnet's.
"I lost this one."
Even if the result truly ended up being a dead heat, as he had initially judged, Shuta An still did not believe he deserved to share first place with Thierry Jarnet in this race.
"No."
Thierry Jarnet immediately denied those words.
"We both won."
A smile appeared on his face as he withdrew his hand and lightly thumped his chest.
"Now we're friends, right?"
"No problem."
Shuta An nodded in agreement.
At this moment, he finally understood just how powerful the world's top jockeys truly were.
Of course, this realization would not discourage him. If anything, it only made him look forward to the months ahead in Europe even more.
Shuta An had a premonition.
After completing this period of European training, when he returned to Japan, he would become even more unstoppable than before.
Meanwhile, inside the lounge, Dettori spat to the side as he watched the two colleagues chatting and laughing on the giant screen.
"These two guys—"