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Perhaps I’m being harsh, but sure Moore dropped his hands with a furlong to go to finish last on the heavily backed favourite The Pouncing Lion.
Given that he was only 3 1/4 lengths behind the winner, IMO he could have eaked out a better finishing position.
I think you will find that the consenus was that Moore limits the amount of poor races he rides compared to others, not that he never rides a poor race as that really would be Mission Impossible for any jockey riding hundreds of horses a year.
I would have serious questions to ask about most of the jockeys that were sitting out the back in today’s Chester Cup – to let Moore dictate that funereal pace (some furlongs were approaching 15 seconds) for almost a circuit and a half (in a week where by and large it paid to sit handy) basically meant they had no chance when the front horses kicked off the front.
You knew your fate pretty early on if you happened to be on any of those held up from mid division back and I wonder just how many jockeys came back and said they didn’t go fast enough and we were too far back.
A 2m2½f race that was basically turned into just over a 4F sprint!
I don’t think The Pouncing Lion was helping Moore much. High head carriage, sweating up the neck and not settling fully early on. Suspect Ryan didn’t mind one coming past as he might have settled better. He did, but the horse seemed to take little interest afterwards. Maybe still greeness, this only his second start, but – for me – there’s an equal possibility of temperament there. He’d also not found a great deal on debut. Visibly going second best for a long way at Goodwood but finding less than I’d have expected. Was also kept 3 wide at the Sussex track, wider than all the other runners. Maybe The Pouncing Lion doesn’t like to be in behind horses?
Yes, Ryan did drop his hands today, maybe just a touch early but I believe he was out of the money at the time and had – just prior to that – administered three with the whip without finding anything for it.
Value Is EverythingIn a race like the Chester Cup jockeys are damned if they do and damned if they don’t make a move from further back.
If it’s a slowish run race then they would probably do better if making an early forward move from the back. But we are judging it that way only because it remained slow. Making an early forward move will only be effective IF that pace remains slow. ie If the pace is slow and then something goes up on the outside then the leaders usually increase that pace. It rarely remains slow from that point onwards… Which would’ve meant those who hadn’t made a forward move early (and hadn’t given away ground by going wide) may well have then been in the right place to pounce.
Even when the early pace has been slow it can still sometimes favour those held up, IF that pace increases soon enough. ie If in a 2m2f race the early pace is what you might expect of a 3 mile race… Then the pace increases halfway to a normal 2m2f pace… And then again 4f out into a normal 1m4f pace… And 10f pace from 2 out… Then the final furlong could well be very slow, favouring those who raced in rear.
So once the horse is in rear, it can often be best to wait and just hope something else pushes the pace, rather than making the move themselves.
Value Is EverythingAgree the damned if you do/don’t argument but then Chester is rather different to most other courses where the momentum lost when those if front quicken first off a slow pace is even more pronounced as you are on the turn pretty much most of the way and going wide trying to quicken past quickening horses really will waste a lot of energy (unless you are on a far superior horse to your rivals) but then waiting until coming off the home turn will invariably leave you too far out of your ground.
Being that they were clocking almost 15 second furlongs for most of the first circuit there was a window for some (or at least one) to make up some cheap lengths without exerting a great deal of effort but most seemd to be resigned to holding station and thus never were going to have any chance of getting competitive…..especially with Moore stacking them up on the front (although his horse seemed to resent the slow gallop as Moore noticeably had the anchors on).
I know hindsight is a wonderful thing but as I was watching it live I was saying to myself that those at the back need to throw whatever the plan was out the window and get closer before the inevitable dash started.
The first 4 home were all on the pace or handy so Who’s Glen (who finished 5th) should be noted as he did come all the way through from the back half of the field.
Terrible ride from Moore on Jolly Roger there.
Had all the time in the world to swing him out wide for a surge down the straight yet chose the impossible route. Should’ve won cosily.
Agreed GM23. I backed Jolly Roger and was perplexed at the difficult route he took. He’s always been my bogus jockey though.
Less is Moore! 👎💩
There was around 5 or 6 of these whose best form has come racing up with if not on the pace. So I can understand Ryan holding the horse up further back than has been the case in the past. ie Thinking the pace was going to be strong – not favouring those ridden prominently… As it turned out the pace was actually fairly slow early but it picked up a fair way out. The pace horses were well beaten and the winner came from last place.
Maybe Ryan could have found a gap to race on the outside, but that gap didn’t last long… And if it wasn’t for another gap between Best Rate and Frankies Dream closing at the last moment – causing Ryan to snatch up – we’d be saying what a brilliant ride it was. Just unlucky imo.
That said, there were more unlucky horses in the race than Jolly Roger.
Value Is EverythingBad ride from the jockey who let the other jockey keep hold of his mount. I’d have been kicking him off and whipping him
https://x.com/AtTheRaces/status/1923694188555579870
Charles Darwin to conquer the World
Maybe “bad ride” is putting it too strongly but it looks like Harry Skelton was overconfident on Ice In The Veins in the 6.35 at Warwick.
Clearly travelling over everything but keeps hold of him, makes a mistake at the last, loses momentum and cannot get the winner back up the short run in.
Couldn’t he have gone on after the second last, or even before it? If he went a length or two clear, it would have been a bit of insurance in case he made a mistake.
I am not suggesting anything dodgy has happened but a drift from 2/9 to 4/11 just before the off will only cause chatter.
The horse should have won, anyway.
I was thinking the same. He should have been aware of the fact that the Warwick run-in is barely 100 yds. long. It was a bad ride, especially from a owner’s point of view.
The horse didn’t jump brilliantly, so it made no sense for Skelton to ride him as though he was going to ping the last, sprint away and win hard held.
Did anyone see the ride on Nogo’s Dream in the Dash today? Number 19, green silks with yellow cap. Looked to be very tenderly handled shall we say. Not sure if it was jockey inexperience, I’ve never heard of him before Sean D Bowen (not the jumps champion jockey). There is a bit of traffic to be fair and it can be a rough race but the jockey definitely could have done more with the horse.
Tom Queally on Love You Back, 6/5 favourite in the 2.30 at Lingfield.
This has caused a lot of chatter elsewhere. Queally settled the horse a long way off the pace, hasn’t shown a lot of urgency up the home straight and found a fair amount of trouble close home.
I didn’t have a bet and have only just watched the race on the ATR site. I think I would be a bit frustrated with the ride if I had backed him.
It doesn’t really look great for racing that SSR’s on track presenter is Hayley Moore.
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