DEL MAR, Calif. – While this year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic conjures memories of last year’s, considering the top three finishers are back in the race, there’s another race that is still very much on the mind of Japanese jockey Ryusei Sakai.
It was the 2024 Kentucky Derby where Forever Young, ridden by Sakai, battled through the Churchill Downs stretch inside of Sierra Leone. Forever Young came up two noses short of Mystik Dan in the Derby. One could argue that a late bump from Sierra Leone might have cost Forever Young a shot at second or perhaps the win.
“We had a very fierce battle. It was a very hard race. I really wanted to win,” Sakai said Wednesday through an interpreter. “So, I want revenge from that race this time.”
Forever Young gets one more crack at Sierra Leone in Saturday’s $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, which for the second consecutive year will be contested at Del Mar. Forever Young finished third in last year’s Classic but may been compromised by his inside draw, which pretty much forced Sakai to use Forever Young early. After chasing hot early fractions and backing up to fourth, Forever Young came on again to get third by a half-length over Newgate.
Sakai and trainer Yoshito Yahagi both said drawing post 5 for this year’s Classic should provide a better trip for Forever Young on Saturday.
“This year, [post] 5 is very ideal,” Sakai said. “We can watch both inside and outside horses. That was the very best draw for us.”
Yahagi, who won two Breeders’ Cup races here in 2021, believes Forever Young has made significant changes from age 3 to 4 and is a better version of the horse he brought here last year.
“He was in great condition last year, but this year he has developed a lot physically and mentally,” Yahagi said. “He has been well and composed since he arrived.”
Forever Young has an impeccable record of 9-0-3 from 12 career starts. He defeated the Hong Kong superstar Romantic Warrior in the $20 million Saudi Cup, a race in which he was up on the pace, got passed by more than a length, and then came back when switched to the outside to get up by a neck.
Six weeks later, Forever Young came back in the Dubai World Cup, where he finished third, two lengths behind the American horse Hit Show. Finishing second was the U.S.-based Mixto.
“He was very tired after the Saudi Cup. It was not his 100 percent [best] performance,” Sakai said about the Dubai World Cup.
Yahagi said Forever Young was “pretty fatigued” following the Dubai World Cup, so he gave him the summer off. Yahagi brought Forever Young back to the races on Oct. 1 in the Nippon TV Hai, a 1 1/4-mile stakes race at Funabashi in Japan. Forever Young won that race by 2 1/2 lengths.
Yahagi said Forever Young was 75 percent fit for that race.
“Our goal was to get him to 100 percent for this upcoming race,” Yahagi said.
Forever Young has looked extremely good in his morning gallops. On Wednesday, he worked a half-mile in 50.89 seconds, getting his final quarter in 24 flat. He went in company with Yahagi’s Breeders’ Cup Sprint longshot, American Stage.
Sakai, who will ride both horses in their respective races, was aboard Forever Young for Wednesday’s workout.
“He breezed very, very well, moved nicely, so I’m very, very confident of what he was doing this morning,” Sakai said.
Despite a stellar field assembled for the Breeders’ Cup Classic, Sakai goes in confident that Forever Young is ready to improve upon last year’s finish.
“This is like an all-star cast, very strong field, but he can do everything he needs. All I can do is ride him the right way,” Sakai said. “I think all we need is more luck.”
The Classic may be the final race for Sierra Leone and Fierceness, but perhaps not Forever Young, who may make another bid for a huge payday in next February’s Saudi Cup.
“Our plan is definitely going to go to Saudi to get a lot of money – that’s the owner’s hope,” Yahagi said. “After Saudi, there’s no option yet.”
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