[my miss storm cat]

Orfevre

Kenichi Ikezoe...

"He's much sharper than he was for the Kobe Shimbun Hai, and he had a lot left in the tank for that race. He worked to the limit today. He responded so well at the end today. I could tell right away that he had a good summer when he came back to us. He really filled out; he was completely lean. In the 3,000 meters at Kyoto, you race past the grandstand once and go through the hill on the third turn twice. More than anything, it's important for the jockey and the horse to be as one. I'm not worried about the competition. This is between me and Orfevre. I'd prefer that we didn't draw too far on the outside; an inside barrier would be better. He was five horses from the front in his last race, and we want to be in a similar position when we turn for home this time. That's about where Deep Impact was when he won it. I don't think we'll be able to make up for everything on the final straight. Orfevre is good enough to win the Triple Crown, and we've got to make sure he gets it done. I'm thrilled to be in the position of someone trying to become the seventh Triple Crown winner of all time. There's a lot of pressure and responsibility on me. There's a part of me that wants it to be over and done with, but a part of me that can't wait. I think I'll be pretty nervous on the day of the race."

Yasutoshi Ikee (trainer)

"He had put on 16 kilograms for his last start, but much of it was him growing. He got off to a really good start in the race and held position throughout, which was a positive sign for us. He was only at about 80 percent for his last race. I can say for sure that he's in better shape than he was then. He was very sharp today over the last furlong; he'll be a lot leaner this time. This race will be completely different to the Kobe Shimbun Hai, which is at Hanshin over 2,400 meters. The impression I have is that it's a difficult course. It didn't work out for his father Stay Gold (eighth in 1997) but his grandfather Mejiro McQueen won the Kikuka Sho in 1990. In terms of pedigree, I'd say it's about 50-50. The competition will do everything they can to stop us from winning the Triple Crown so we can't afford to let up. You don't get an opportunity like this too often. I hope we can come through for the fans."