Christophe Lemaire had his first ride on two-year-old colt Aaron's Rod, the first foal of the legendary mare Almond Eye, who won nine G1 races. During a workout at the Miho Training Center, the colt clocked 55.5 seconds for 4F, with splits of 40.2 seconds and 13.0 seconds, all whilst ridden in hand.

"I'm delighted to ride Almond Eye's foal," Lemaire said with a smile. "It was just the first workout, and he was jumping at his own shadows." He added, "He has the same stride form as his mother. He's light and has a big stride. I'm looking forward to his debut at Niigata this summer."