Japanese shipper Finger adds new dimension to strong Pacific Classic
:quality(75))
DEL MAR, Calif. – He is a 3-year-old three-time stakes winner who often boldly sets the pace. He has never started in a graded stakes and never faced older horses, and he is attempting to become the first foreign-based runner to win Del Mar’s richest annual race.
The presence of the colt Finger in Saturday’s Grade 1 Pacific Classic has added an element of intrigue to an already competitive race.
Finger, a winner of 4 of 8 starts and $1,303,486 in Japan, is the only 3-year-old in the $1 million Pacific Classic at 1 1/4 miles. He arrived at Del Mar via quarantine in Los Angeles on Sunday and had his first day of exercise on the racetrack Monday.
In a field of 11 in the Pacific Classic, Finger will start from post 3, a draw that should give the colt a forward position in the opening furlongs. From there, the race will test Finger’s ability against a field of accomplished rivals and measure whether his success in Japan transfers to a top-level American race.
“Our trainer wants him to go to the front,” racing manager Mitsuoki Numamoto said in the Del Mar stables on Monday. “That is his strength.”
:: Play to Win at Del Mar! Get DRF Past Performances, Expert Picks and Clocker Reports
The ability to lead and finish well has given Finger wins in important races in his last two starts – the Haneda Hai at 1 1/8 miles on April 29 and the Tokyo Derby at 1 1/4 miles on June 10, both at Oi Racecourse. But a January win in the Bluebird Cup at 1 1/8 miles at Funabashi Racecourse showed that Finger is not one-dimensional.
Ridden by Keita Tosaki, who has the mount in the Pacific Classic, Finger stalked the pace in the Bluebird Cup. He was three wide on the first turn and backstretch, and four wide on the turn before taking the lead in the final furlong. Finger won by 1 1/2 lengths.
In the Tokyo Derby at 1 1/4 miles, Finger started from post 12 in a field of 16. He disputed the early pace before taking a clear lead on the first turn. He led by at least a half-length on the backstretch, regained a clear lead in early stretch, and won by 1 1/4 lengths.
“Watching the race, I was thinking he was really strong,” Numamoto said.
Oi and Funabashi are Tokyo-area tracks with dirt surfaces that are part of Japan’s National Association of Racing (NAR) circuit, a level below the Japan Racing Association tracks. While JRA tracks such as Hanshin, Kyoto, Nakayama, and Tokyo host many of the nation’s leading races, particularly on turf, the NAR tracks have been a proving ground for world-class runners such as Forever Young.
Last fall, Forever Young won the Nippon TV Hai at Funabashi by 2 1/2 lengths and followed with a win in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar. Forever Young was honored with an Eclipse Award as the outstanding older male of 2025 in the United States. Finger, who races for owner and breeder Masahiko Sugino and trainer Hiroyasu Tanaka, has raced only on dirt.
While he was bred in Japan, Finger has an American pedigree. Finger is by Gun Runner, who currently ranks third in the nation in progeny earnings with more than $14.3 million.
Finger is out of the Kentucky-bred Estilo Talentoso, by Maclean’s Music. Estilo Talentoso won the Grade 3 Bed o’ Roses Stakes at Aqueduct in 2021 and was second in the Grade 1 Madison Stakes at Keeneland that year. She was purchased for $600,000 at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky fall mixed sale. Finger is her first foal.
Finger was second in three maiden races at a mile and 1 1/8 miles at Nakayama and Tokyo last September and November. He won his first start this year in a maiden race at 1 1/8 miles at Nakayama in January and followed two weeks later with his win in the Bluebird Cup.
Tanaka and jockey Tosaki have experience in California racing. Tosaki rode Songline to a fifth-place finish in the BC Mile at Santa Anita in 2023. A year later, the Tanaka-trained Rousham Park finished a fast-closing second in the BC Turf at Del Mar.
The Pacific Classic will determine Finger’s fall campaign. The winner of the race receives a fees-paid berth to the BC Classic at Keeneland on Oct. 31. Finger is scheduled to be flown back to Japan next week.
In the 35-year history of the Pacific Classic, there have been four runners who made their last starts outside of the United States, including the 3-year-old Toast of New York from Britain, who was second in 2014. There have been six 3-year-old winners, the most recent being Arabian Knight for Bob Baffert in 2023.
With a career-best race, Finger could be the first foreign-trained winner, which could propel the colt into even more important races in this country.
Numamoto has bold hopes, declaring, “I can’t say he’s going to lose.”
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.