The three favorites of the race, W Heart Bond, Costa Nova, and Wilson Tesoro spread out four-wide in the last 200m with Brian Sense on the rail, but Costa Nova held on from the outside to clinch his second G1 win with a time of 1:35.4. 9th- and 7th-favorites Brian Sense and Omega Guinness complete the top five.
Fifth-favorite Sixpence spent most of the race in the front three together with Peptide Nile and Lord Couronne, but the three began to fade with 300 meters left, forcing the race favorites to make their move from the outside. Peptide Nile, upset winner of the 2023 edition, advanced from their right but was quickly passed before the final 100 meters.
In the race's final seconds, it was four-wide, with long-shot Brian Sense on the rail, favorite W Heart Bond to his right, Wilson Tesoro to her right, and Costa Nova on the far outside. Their positions stayed still as they crossed the line, with the horses closest to the outside placing the highest.
W Heart Bond entered as the favorite after narrowly beating Wilson Tesoro in the Champions Cup in December, with Costa Nova's odds just slightly worse. This race is the first time W Heart Bond has finished outside the top two, but her record of 9-7-7-1 speaks for itself. Whether or not she's aimed for foreign glory, she's proven herself as the best mare on dirt in Japan.
Wilson Tesoro has come in 2nd in a G1 for the fourth time, and still seeks an internationally-graded victory. Now in his seven-year-old year, his time to do so may be running out, and his reputation as a silver collector is even further cemented. Despite that, he's still won two domestic G1s, the 2024 JBC Classic and last year's Mile Championship Nambu Hai.
For Costa Nova, it is his third graded victory, following his wins in the G3 Negishi Stakes and February Stakes last year. He raced only once last autumn, coming second to Luxor Cafe in a somewhat stacked running of the G3 Musashino Stakes. Jockey Christophe Lemaire, who led the JRA in both wins and winning average, wins the February Stakes for the first time since back-to-back wins aboard Mozu Ascot and Cafe Pharoah in 2020 and 2021. For owner Katsumi Yoshida, it's his second G1 win in two months, as Star Anise won the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies.
