Meet Japanese Kentucky Derby contenders Derma Sotogake and Continuar

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00:00After an impressive runner-up effort by Mandarin Hero in the Santa Anita Derby,

00:06we caught up with two other Japanese colts vying for a spot in this year's Kentucky Derby.

00:10Kate Hunter tells us more about UAE Derby winner Dermo Sotogake and third-place finisher

00:16Kintinuar and we met a few of their connections. Dermo Sotogake was always impressive. From the

00:24time I saw him in Saudi through Dubai, he's just a beautiful horse. He moves really,

00:28really well. He's a really sweet horse, but he's also full of fire, so it was really exciting to

00:35see. I wasn't expecting him to go to the lead because he didn't do that when he won the Zen

00:40Nippon Nisayushin, but he did it just effortlessly. Kintinuar is really relaxed. Every time I see him,

00:53I would never have expected he was a three-year-old. He's just so chill. And I think he's

00:58one of those horses who ran really well in his first Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby,

01:02the Catalia Show, or Catalia Stakes now, and he's always been there. In each race,

01:07he's been there. And I think the UAE Derby, he probably got not the best trip, so it would be

01:14pretty exciting to see him kind of rebound off that kind of lower performance and pick it up

01:20here in the Derby. But they are both amazingly bred, talented horses that will bring that calmness,

01:27that collectiveness, will probably really come in handy on Derby Day. We've taken it pretty easy

01:32while we've been here. Today, Kintinuar had his first little push, and I think tomorrow,

01:38Derma Sotogaki is going to go a little, not really what Americans would consider a breeze,

01:42so to speak, but they will go faster than they have been. Japanese training, at its core,

01:49probably isn't that different necessarily in the sense of the number of breezes or how fast or slow

01:56they necessarily go. But I think the focus on warming up and cooling down under tack is really

02:03different from what you see in America, where they'll walk the shed row to cool, to warm up

02:08and to cool down. But here, pretty much, it's all done with a rider on their back. Kazu, the rider,

02:15groom of Kintinuar, he was actually the rider and groom of Love's Only You as well. He's had

02:21some experience with the limelight, and he loves the United States very much. I won Breeders' Cup

02:27with Love's Only You 2021. That experience was the most exciting experience, but also this is my second

02:34greatest experience in my life. I don't have anything meaningful to me, because for me,

02:41the most important is Derma Sotogaki. I hope he shows his ability at the races and he shows his

02:48value, how much he can do it, and just that's very important for us. The best thing about Japanese

02:54racing fans is how passionate they are. They love seeing their racehorses travel overseas.

03:01They love seeing their racehorses travel around, you know, in Japan. Personally, the Kentucky Derby

03:07is what got me into horse racing. So being able to help someone win the Kentucky Derby, that's

03:13basically my goal in life now. It was so amazing to be there and to have assisted the Japanese

03:20on their travels to win the Breeders' Cup. But there's, again, there's always something special

03:25about the Kentucky Derby. So that's my... If we can get one of these, I'll be... I can die happy.