T O Password tops Japan Road leaderboard with front-running Fukuryu

Mar 23, 2024 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Tomoya Ozasa’s T O Password dictated the pace and just held on in Saturday’s Fukuryu S. at Nakayama, clinching the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby title. The undefeated Triple Crown nominee earned 40 points to top the leaderboard, and along with it, an invitation to Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May, if his connections decide to accept.

A two-length winner in a race for newcomers at Kyoto Jan. 6, T O Password was overlooked as the 13-1 seventh choice in the Fukuryu. But the son of Japanese dirt champion Copano Rickey went straight to the early lead and repelled every challenge.

Under jockey Katsuma Sameshima, T O Password got a midrace breather that allowed the stalkers to get close, then he kicked away down the stretch. Just when it looked as if T O Password were home free, Arare Tabashiru surged late to produce a dramatic finish. T O Password kept his head in front at the wire, completing about 1 1/8 miles in 1:54.1.

T O PASSWORD wins the Fukuryu Stakes on the Japan Road to the #KyDerby!

Will we see him in the starting gates on the first Saturday in May? 🌹pic.twitter.com/3qGQHT5XE2

— Kentucky Derby (@KentuckyDerby) March 23, 2024

Arare Tabashiru, also nominated to the Triple Crown, picked up 20 points in second. Amber Doll, a 146-1 longshot, stayed on in a surprising third (12 points) from fourth-place favorite La Oracion (eight points). Triple Crown nominee Sunrise Soleil took fifth, good for four points. Next came Harbor Light, Not Enough, second choice Rata Forest, Bushin, Century Bond, and Ramsay Tesoro.

T O Password is now 2-for-2 for trainer Daisuke Takayanagi, who also conditioned champion T O Keynes for the same owner (as indicated by his T O prefix). Takayanagi reportedly is interested in considering the Kentucky Derby.

If T O Password ends up declining, the next in line to receive the Japan Road invitation would be Triple Crown-nominated Ramjet, second on the leaderboard with the 30 points he won in the Hyacinth S. Forever Young has 20 points from his victory in the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun, but he’s banking on next Saturday’s UAE Derby (G2) on Dubai World Cup (G1) night. Arare Tabashiru also has 20 points, rounding out the Japan Road top four who are all eligible for the Triple Crown.