The Canterbury apprentice continued his stunning form in the saddle when winning race 3 with Feel The Rush and race 6 with Kitty Power for trainers Kelvin and Aimee Tyler.
Asano’s flow of recent winners has him leading the national jockeys’ premiership, six years after the Japanese-born rider left his homeland with no experience with horses.
Asano initially went to Australia on a student visa, before gaining riding experience while working on a strawberry farm near Brisbane.
The farm owners had western-style horses and showjumpers, which gave Asano his desire to seek work with racehorses.
He gained his first experience in riding work at Eagle Farm, before working for Central Districts trainer Gary Vile and then moving to Andrew Carston’s Riccarton stable.
Trainer Kelvin Tyler gave Asano a perfect rating for his ride on Kitty Power in yesterday’s 0-1 win 1200m event.
"It was a 10 out of 10 ride," he said. "He dropped back, come up the fence and saved a heap of ground and it was the winning of the race, to be honest."
Yesterday’s race was significantly easier than some of the assignments Kitty Power had been given since she broke her maiden at Wingatui in June.
The 3yr-old had raced in the Guineas Trial at Riccarton, the Barnswood Farm Stakes at Ashburton and a premier race at the New Zealand Cup Carnival in the spring.
"We tried her in some of the better 3yr-old races and she is probably not a miler, so we bought her back to 1200m," Tyler said.
Asano’s winning run is set to continue today at the Christmas At The Races meeting at Ascot Park, where the 24-year-old has rides in each of the nine races.
One of his best rides today comes from the Carston stable with Celtic Cross in race 3.
The 7yr-old should strip fitter following her run in a much stronger race at Cromwell earlier this month.
Always On Call looks a strong chance for Asano in the 1200m open sprint. The apprentice’s 2kg claim, the horse’s barrier 1 draw and her winning record at Ascot Park are all in the Terry Kennedy-trained 6yr-old’s favour.
Asano rides veteran Timy Tyler in the 2200m, the Southland Crystals. The Tyler-trained galloper clashes with Sitarist, who ran a strong second to her stablemate Camino Rocosso in the Cromwell Cup.
A crowd of nearly 7000 is expected at today’s meeting.
"We have 5500 people pre-booked and we are banking on a walk-up crowd of 1400," Southland Racing Club president Sean Bellew said.
