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I’m not saying about crossing swords on the track. But it’s easier to separate them for breeding purposes as well.
They have bagged a good one (Blackbeard) now and all the roads lead to Auguste Rodin’s three year old campaign.Certainly makes sense
With Little Big Bear in the stable tooGaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
A complete lunatic that barely lasted a full season in training.
And breeders will be queueing up to use him.
Agree to an extent CAS
The stable superstar by No Nay Never Little Big Bear hasn’t been seen since his “slight” setback.
The progeny of NNN don’t tend to be improvers at 3 y/o so for Blackbeard to run as many times as he did could be seen as a positive for the NNN BreedThe one thing NNN does produce is speed and plenty of it and that seems to be the buzz word in terms of the mating game.
The breeders will be queueing possibly not because it will enhance the breed of horse but because it will make hard fast cash.
The buyer is to blame, I think…
Gaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
Yes, money talks.
But is it any good for the breed? It was suggested earlier in this thread that Blackbeard should be gelded after his behaviour at the start. That was clearly never going to happen but in an ideal world it probably should.
As soon as I hear a horse is sired by No Nay Never, my heart sinks. I would not be in the least bit surprised if LBB does not train on and his absence has to be a concern.
Blackbeard will probably produce fast 2yos like himself.
And there’s a big demand for them.
In ten years’ time, precocious 2yos will be retired to stud without any of this injury stuff – it’s the way the industry is heading.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"I’m afraid I couldn’t entirely rule that out, CAS.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"That is the way it is going.
I know we have had a bit of fun with Blackbeard. He was a character, had a bit of charisma and was a very good racehorse.
I was quite impressed with him when he won the Middle Park. I even threw a small bet on him for the Commonwealth Cup. I don’t mind losing – it is the chance you take with antepost punting.
However, I genuinely think it is a serious issue for the future of the breed if horses like Blackbeard are going to become the sought after stallions.
Is this how we want racing to be? Offspring of fast but fragile stallions running on watered ground.
And where will it leave the Derby if these sort of stallions start to dominate?
It will leave The Derby, like the St Leger, as a race that generates NH stallions unless the winner already has Guineas form at a mile or can successfully revert to 1m2f after winning at Epsom.
This process is already well under way – the reality, as I’ve said many times, is The Derby would have more modern-day commercial relevance if it was 1m2f itself.
That’s not something I want to see, but I think it is destined to remain the elephant in the room.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"I wouldnt be worried regards lbbears injury. He kicked a wall before his stellar last run and also probably took a lot out of himself so it seems sensible to put him away for next season. As for blackbeard being gelded this was never going to happen . For all his quirks he has produced on the track and was improving with each run.Its not guaranteed his progeny will be as much of a character as the captain.
I agree its not healthy for the sport with speed being the overiding factor. If thats what buyers want thats what will continue to happen. John magnier is partly to blame as he started a few years back looking to cross 10 and 12f horses to sprinters which of course frankel was. I hope auguste rodin turns into a top class horse and more breeders cross 12f horses with milers.I don’t actually think it’s the “fault” of any individual.
Racehorse ownership used to be the province of the aristocracy, with vast undisclosed wealth and with it endless patience.
A world where horses peaked at 4yo+ for the 2m4f Gold Cup, with Classics mere stepping stones on the way (a bit like 2yo races are now) was workable then.
In the 20th century, the older stayers became slowly less fashionable and the Classic season began to hold sway.
Now 2yo races and speed are increasingly important.
It’s all because today’s wealthy owners – a handful of petro-dollar billionaires aside – the people buying horses to race every day of the week, are largely business people in a modern world which demands quick returns.
The breeding industry has adapted to cater for changing demand in a more global (1m2f the key distance in the USA for many years) marketplace.
I’m glad we still have the broadly historic Racing Calendar we do, it espouses traditions dating back to the 19th century, but much of it has little modern commercial relevance and that’s sadly a fact.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"Cormack reacts
https://www.captiongenerator.com/v/2283071/cormack-reacts
Gaelic Warrior Gold Cup Winner 2026
I’ve lost it, literally, uncontrollable mirth – funniest thing I’ve EVER seen here.
And it just keeps giving – until the bitter end!
Nathan Hughes = comedy genius.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"Nathan…🤣😅🤣😆Lol
Falling about laughing here and haunted by the thought of Blackbeard burgers rolling out in a supermarket near me sometime soon.
You ‘re as bonkers as ‘himself’ Nathan and I hear Cormack’s up for an Oscar for that performance,..he scrubs up well doesn’t he.
Things turn out best for those who make the best of how things turn out...Ian said: “It will leave The Derby, like the St Leger, as a race that generates NH stallions unless the winner already has Guineas form at a mile or can successfully revert to 1m2f after winning at Epsom.
This process is already well under way – the reality, as I’ve said many times, is The Derby would have more modern-day commercial relevance if it was 1m2f itself. That’s not something I want to see, but I think it is destined to remain the elephant in the room.”I say:
If ten furlongs is “where it’s at” these days and the two top ranked horses in the world (Baaeed and Flightline) are both ten furlong specialists, we have to respect that reality. That is where the money is. Just like yesterday in the extraordinary race for the ten furlong Tenno Sho (Autumn) where Equinox picked up the over £1.3 million first prize money. But we still have to respect the reality that those horses could not be what they are without the quantity of twelve furlong sires in their previous generations. Both Baaeed and Flightline have 26% twelve furlong Group 1 winning sires in their first four generations, and Equinox has 47%.In the future, if the Derby was ten furlongs it may well indeed have more relevance, but only relevance related to who is the “champion” horse, or who won the most money, in any given year. If we get rid of the championship twelve furlong races that create the twelve furlong stallions then the future champions may well be eight furlongs specialists, and eventually, following the same logic in sequence, the future will belong to the Quarter Horse. Horse racing without any of its specialisms is a diminished sport, less interesting, and less fun. If you get rid of the twelve furlong stallions, you get rid of horses like Baaeed, Flightline and Equinox. Of course, if we had done it four decades ago there would have been no Frankel.
The characteristics of thoroughbred horse racing are like a whole eco-system, many factors blending together to create what we now understand to be the sport we love today. Change a significant factor and problems arise. Have you heard the story about the beavers in Scotland: “Eurasian beavers are a native species to the UK, but they were hunted to extinction in the 16th Century. They are one of the world’s most adept natural engineers, with an incredible ability to create new wetlands, restore native woodland and improve conditions for a huge range of species including dragonflies, otters and fish.” They have recently been re-introduced, and are now a proteced species in Scotland.
Just because a potential action looks like common sense, in the long term (with hindsight) it might look really silly. Thank goodness we can use foresight if we want to.
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