Ask Victor More

Ask Victor More(アスクビクターモア; April 1, 2019 – August 8, 2023) was a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse that won the 2022 Kikuka-shō and Yayoi Sho.

Background
Ask Victor More was foaled on April 1, 2019, at the Shadai Farm in Chitose, Hokkaido. At the 2020 Yearlings Sale, the horse was purchased by for a total of 187 million yen, and became co-owned by Hirosaki and. After training, he was sent to the stable of Yasuhito Tamura at Miho Training Center.

2021: Two-year old season
Ask Victor More ran his first race, an 1800-meter race at Tokyo Racecourse, at a maiden race on June 26 with as his jockey. The horse was the most favored to win, but finished third behind Geoglyph, who would later go on to win the Satsuki Shō. Ask Victor More would earn his first win at another maiden race at Nakayama Racecourse on September 20.

Ask Victor More entered the Ivy Stakes, a Listed race, the following month. The horse was once again started as the most favored to win, but ended up finishing third to future Derby winner Do Deuce.

2022: Three-year-old season
Ask Victor More's jockey was switched to  for his first race of the year at an allowance race, which he managed to score his second victory.

Later on, Ask Victor More entered the Yayoi Sho on March 6 with Tanabe continuing his role as the horse's jockey. Do Deuce, who had gone on to win the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes undefeated and won the JRA Award for Best Two-Year-Old Colt since the last time the two raced together, was the most favored, while Ask Victor More himself was the third most favored. The race proceeded at a slow pace, with Ask Victor More running at second place; before the horse overtook the lead on the final stretch, and outrunning Do Deuce by a neck even as he was making his final push, marking the horse's first group race victory. . As Ask Victor More was the only Deep Impact crop in that race, this win marked the 7th win of a Deep Impact crop won the Yayoi Sho, overtaking Sunday Silence's record of the 6 wins by its crop, as well as the 6th consecutive victory for any Deep Impact crop to enter that race. .

Following his victory, the horse entered the Satsuki Shō held on April 17. The horse, who was the 6th most favored, ran from the inside, and finished 5th even as he was being pressured from Desierto. Tanabe recalled after the race that "he anticipated Desierto to take the lead, but the horse ran out of the gate so smoothly and no one was in front of them so he took the lead."

After this, the horse was entered into the Tōkyō Yūshun. He was the 7th most favoured, and the horse pursued the Desierto, who had been in the lead, and took the lead on the final 400 meters. He ended up finishing third, as both Do Deuce and Equinox had passed him soon after. Tanabe commented that "the horse would have been at a disadvantage when it came to sharpness, so I thought I had to be more proactive. I thought I had a chance since the horse still had some strength left after the final curve, but I was passed on the climb" and that "we lost, but it was productive". Ask Victor More's trainer, Yasuhito Tamura, commented "The horse ran as planned. On a regular year, he would've won the race based on the time. I have no regrets."

After taking a summer break, Ask Victor More started the autumn leg of the season with the St Lite Kinen on September 19. He started the race as the most favored, and placed himself in third. He went neck-and-neck against on the final stretch and briefly overtook him, but ultimately lost to Gai Force by a head.

After the St Lite Kinen, Ask Victor More entered the final leg of the Classic races of Japan, the Kikuka-shō, a 3000-meter long race that was held at Hanshin Racecourse that year. He was the second most favored horse of that race behind Gaia Force. After starting the race, he placed himself behind Seiun Hades before taking the lead in between the 3rd and 4th corners of the second lap, and managed to stave off by a nose. For both Tanabe and Tamura, it was their first Kikuka-shō win. Ask Victor More's time was 3:02.4, which broke the course record that was set by Narita Top Road at the 2001 Hanshin Daishoten by 0.1 second. The victory also marked the fifth Kikuka-shō win for any Deep Impact crop (a record for any sire) and also the 24th Classic win, the most out of any sire.

2023: Four-year-old season
Ask Victor More took the rest of the 2022 season off, before starting off his four-year-old season off with the Nikkei Sho, before entering the Spring Tenno Sho, as was previously announced by Tamura. Tamura commented that "the horse gained 20 kilograms in weight but doesn't feel heavy at all. The head of Yamamoto (Training Center) told me he was confident with the horse's condition. I wanted to use a race that covered 2500 meters at Nakayama with the Arima Kinen in mind."

However, the horse finished at 9th at the Nikkei Sho, and 11th at the Tenno Sho. After finishing at 11th place at the Takarazuka Kinen, the horse went on a break.

It was on this break where Ask Victor More, who was preparing for the autumn season, died on August 8 due to organ failure caused by a heat stroke. He was 4.

Racing statistics
The following information is based on data from JBIS Search and netkeiba.com. All races that Ask Victor More participated in were turf races.

Pedigree

 * 2016 Coronation Stakes winner Qemah is a half-sister to Ask Victor More.
 * Pretty Gorgeous, winner of the British Fillies' Mile, is a cousin to Ask Victor More, as she was foaled by Kartica's half-sister.