American-bred Nobo True was right on the mark Sunday as he extended his winning streak to three with a 1 1/4-length victory over race favorite Wing Arrow in the February Stakes at Tokyo Racecourse.
French rider Olivier Peslier, who took the reins of Wing Arrow in 2000, made it to the winner's circle of the year's first G1 race for the second year in a row.
Coming from a mid-field position into the long Tokyo straight, the 5-year-old Nobo True gained the lead from To the Victory with 100 meters to go and held on for the win.
Bad luck and prerace exertion may have worked against Wing Arrow after jockey Yukio Okabe discovered weights he had put down his boots had fallen out en route to the gate.
The race start was delayed as horse and rider were called back to the weighing room for a recheck.
Okabe was fined 30,000 yen.
Nobo True, by Broad Brush out of Nastique, improved his record to seven wins in 27 starts and raised his earnings to over 227 million yen for owner Ikebata Inc. Sunday's win was worth 94 million yen.