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It is unfortunate the Fighting Fifth was off this season. I don’t blame Henderson for not wanting to run him on heavy ground in the rearranged race so close to Christmas. I think most punters sympathised with him.
I hope Constitution Hill goes to Punchestown. If he does, I don’t think anyone can criticise his season too much.
The comments above highlight the old issue about owners and punters. Owners put plenty of money into the game but punters do as well. Admission prices are not cheap at weekends but too much of the pre Cheltenham season is underwhelming. Are punters getting value for money?
Even Cheltenham has issues, with too many races and top horses dodging each other.
“Cheltenham…the only jumps meeting in this country that really matters”.
Isn’t that the problem? Too many people now think it is the only meeting that matters. Henderson has even said as much, when he pulled Altior out of the Tingle Creek.
Cheltenham never used to completely dominate the season. Now it does and not necessarily for the better.
Does the pre Cheltenham season need rethinking? Couldn’t there be a big mid-season meeting somewhere? It might mean moving a race or two but the season does not work now.
Ireland has shown what can be done with the Dublin Racing Festival over jumps and Champions Weekend on the Flat. Both recent innovations and tremendously successful.
“Albeit Aintree’s National meeting is a valiant second, if distant.”
I don’t think it is that distant now. The opening day is the equal of anything Cheltenham offers and much better value.
I don’t think its the prize money that’s a problem, most of these owners don’t own horses because they expect to turn a profit on them. I think Cheltenham unfortunately has become this all encompassing thing where anyone who is anyone wants to be there, its a a bit like the Monaco GP with Formula 1, its actually a crap race but everyone wants to be associated with the glitz and glammer. I can well imagine if you owned a horse the ego side of it, the look at me I own a Cheltenham winning horse when you’re on TV and the socials is quite a pull.
I agree CAS that Aintree is high quality but in terms of a ‘target’ it lags a long way behind cheltenham, other than the National and the odd specialist horse for other races, I think a few UK owners/trainers have had the penny drop that avoiding Mullins et al at Cheltenham and going straight to Aintree increases their chances of a big race winner. Aintree suffers from being hot on the heels of Cheltenham so there is very little build up to the meeting while Cheltenham has a whole year (almost) of media anticipation. Maybe they should move Aintree to Feb?
CormackIt’s up to other racecourses to match what Cheltenham has done in terms of prize money and marketing.
For example, if Uttoxeter put on a hypothetical 3m chase with a £5 million first prize the day after the Gold Cup, the latter would soon become obsolete.
“Maybe they should move Aintree to Feb?”
I will leave it to you to tell the Liverpool ladies they are going to have their big day in the middle of winter…
The die is cast, Cheltenham will now forever be the focus of the NH season from the end of the last season to the beginning of the next. I find it very difficult to get excited about Aintree no matter the class of race because to me they are consolation races from the holy grail that is Cheltenham.
The things I want most in life are the things that I can't win.
Cormack, I was thinking about that too, but more because of the National. A GN in the middle of February would suit a lot of horses that need decent winter ground and have taken part in all the Hational trials from November till February.
But apart from that who will make any significant entries for the G1 races with Cheltenham about four weeks later? Both meetings are to close to each other and Cheltenham will remain the NH Olympics.
Yes Glad, that would be a move to have a 3m chase round Uttoxeter worth a few million to the winner.
“Does it really matter what future punters think of The Hill?
I get frustrated when people talk about securing a horse’s legacy for the ‘sake of the horse’ and stuff of that ilk. The horse won’t give a jot what punters think of him. He won’t care if he’s lauded to the rooftops or forgotten tomorrow. Horses don’t care about the things we care about. They don’t care if they win or lose (albeit some might like to be at the front or in the middle of the herd – but that is not about ‘winning’). They don’t know if they’re racing in a Champion Hurdle or a selling hurdle.
Would you rather see him four times, trotting up unopposed but getting a niggle in the last race which kept him out of the Champion Hurdle.
Or would you rather see him once, at Cheltenham”?————————
For me Corm’, Constitution Hill has a real chance of becoming universally acclaimed as the best Hurdler we have ever seen. Just as Frankel was / is on the Flat.
I believe Constitution Hill currently has a 177p Timeform Rating. The best ever hurdle rating is 182, put up by Night Nurse. I suppose State Man might be able to push Constitution Hill into putting up a 183+ performance in the Champion Hurdle, to become Timeform’s best ever hurdler. But that would only be one performance… and one performance is far easier to dismiss and doesn’t hold the punters hearts. Particularly punters of the future. Maybe there just isn’t another true top class hurdler around to push Constitution Hill into a 183+ – especially if eased on the run-in once clear… Which is why a handicap might actually give this horse the opportunity. The fewer races Constitution Hill runs in the less likely he is of producing one 183+ performance, let alone regular performances of that ilk, which could possibly see him universally acclaimed as THE Best Hurdler.
Frankel put up so many Timeform 140+ performances there was no missing his brilliance. Had he put up just one performance of 147 and nothing else within 5 lbs; then many punters (of his time and of the future) would not have believed he was THE Best… And he would not have the position he’s got in Racing’s history. For sure Frankel couldn’t give a toss where his position in Racing history is – he’s a horse. But I suspect all those connected with Frankel cared. I care too. THE Best ever horse (whether Flat, Chase or Hurdler) deserves to be thought of as just that.
Value Is EverythingLast season was full of excitement for Constitution Hill but this season I find myself not particularly caring. The whole drama of will he or won’t he race, there are no other opportunities (yes there are) bla bla bla just switches me off.
The things I want most in life are the things that I can't win.
I’ve got 12/1 he never wins another Champion Hurdle and a saver at 7/2 that he only wins one more but, while I think State Man might give him a bit more of a race this year, I’m not hopeful of either bet.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"Just been looking back at the mighty Istabtaq’s record to see how many times he raced in a season. And we did see him alot more in build up to Cheltenham.
I still say no horse will equal him and his Champion hurdle record which if weren’t for foot and mouth disease he would have won that year toIstabraq national hunt form
211111/111112/1111111/12111/F1F/1P/Vf x
Ginger, to me you’ve hit the nail on the head, he will be the best hurdler but not necessarily the best horse. We are now resigned (due to his brilliance) of egg and spoon races leading up to Cheltenham and possibly four wins on the bounce and then being retired when the last of those becomes an effort. If only he was trained at Ditcheat, he would have seen a fence by now…
“Would you rather see him four times, trotting up unopposed but getting a niggle in the last race which kept him out of the Champion Hurdle.
Or would you rather see him once, at Cheltenham?”Purely hypothetical as it’s not a choice between the two and he could be saved for the one at Cheltenham and get a niggle on the gallops the week before.
Seriously underachieving for such a good horse if he’s being restricted to only 2 or 3 races a season.
I haven’t heard any good reason why you wouldn’t want to run him in the Irish Champion Hurdle and the Punchestown Champion Hurdle apart from the pathetic “Nicky doesn’t like to have runners in Ireland”.
Time for Michael Buckley to put his foot down otherwise he could be missing the opportunity of a lifetime.One quality I have never shared with either the racing public nor the racing media is the desire to manipulate the sport I am watching and betting on.
In the 47 years I’ve followed the game, I’ve seen endless campaigns by public and media to have owners and trainers target horses at certain races.
And on the thankfully rare occasions that connections bow to pressure, it’s usually with catastrophic results.
So I’ve got zero desire to clamour for the best Champion Hurdler since Istabraq (and maybe even Night Nurse and Monksfield) to get well and truly found out in the Gold Cup at Ascot, or even race more than he does.
There are myriad people in this game and many have differing modus operandi.
Nicky Henderson is what he is – if you don’t like that maybe you’re following the wrong game? – and others are what they are.
When you’re watching a movie, you don’t desire to manipulate the outcome of it, so why do it with racing?
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"
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