Croix du Nord

A full field of 18 juveniles heads to the post for the final Group 1 event on the JRA calendar, Saturday's Hopeful Stakes over the metric mile and a quarter at Nakayama Racecourse. And the entrants will be looking to join an honour roll that includes the likes of future luminaries such as Epiphaneia (Jpn), Rey de Oro (Jpn), Saturnalia (Jpn) and Contrail (Jpn), who would go on to secure the Triple Crown the following season. As recently as last weekend, the Hopeful form received the best kind of advertisement...