- This topic has 30 replies, 15 voices, and was last updated 23 years, 9 months ago by
.
- Posts
It’s AP’s grit and unrivalled determination that propells him to the top. He rides and rides and rides. Not many, if any, other jockeys would ride day in day out like he does. The less a good jockey rides, the less he achieves, and AP would not be where he is if he didn’t put it all in, and all credit to him – he deserves it. It is up to him whether to sit back or keep on going to any possible burn out. And I can be confident if I ever backed a horse that having a 110% committed jock on top would be a bonus. Having Pipe behind him is another big part of his success but not totally.
Determination + hard work + Decent stable = very successful jockey. If that continues furthermore, records will be smashed. To me it’s as simple as that, and of course, the natural talent has to be there, and we all know it’s there with all top jockeys riding today. Some are more determined than others. Yet sometimes I wonder when AP will burn out, surely his lifestyle is not a healthy one, even for a young fit jockey like him.
I’ve seen all the top riders since and including Fred Winter, and in my opinion McCoy is the best. Of course his association with the great Martin Pipe will tend to exaggerate, statistically, his superiority over others, but I’d rate him just ahead of Francome, Dunwoody and Winter (in that order).
Venusian, it’s really great to read an opinion from someone who has seen the best over such a long period – I never saw Fred Winter ride (too young) but I remember that he was still the benchmark when John Francome, for example, was riding.
Thanks, Tete Rouge, I was lucky enough to see Fred Winter ride during the last 3 or 4 years of his career.
Not a tall man by NH standards (5ft 7in maybe), his greatest attributes (to me anyway) were his strength, determination and courage. He had a great ability to galvanise a horse by using his whole body to squeeze a horse forward, and snatch a race out of the fire. In that respect he was at least the equal of McCoy.
I’ve always felt that the nearest jockey to him, stylewise, wasn’t another jump rider, but Willie Carson. And like Willie, they say he was by no means a ‘natural’ in his earliest riding days (unlike John Francome, for instance), but by hard work turned himself into a quite outstanding jockey.
I also think ap is the best nh jockey ever to have sat on a horse he gives almost every ride the works , he is class personified, no doubts about it , seller to graded class, its all the same to him, he goes on the scrubbin boards & rides them from start to finish if needed, the punters pal without a doubt.
While I’m in a bad, ranting mood, I’d like to see all this bull turd written in the Racing Post et al about him not "reaching out to the general public" stop. When will people realise that not since the war has racing had a mass appeal, and it probably never will again, and nor does it really matter, as long as enough new recruits enter the sport to replace the dead ones.
I mean – who cares? Racing seems to be in rude enough health to me, and no amount of Tony McCoy leaping off horses, answering questions about crown green bowling to Sue Barker, and selling Ice Creams, Pizzas or Chips is going to make apeths of difference to the sport.
I remember Peter Scudamore, circa 1989, being wheeled out on Question of Sport and Wogan, and racing insiders bleating on "innit marvellous, he’s reaching out beyond the narrow confines of our sport, squawk squawk" – but what difference did it really make? Zip. Who remembers him, outside grand national day, now? Noone.
Don’t know what the point of that post was, but I enjoyed it :biggrin:
18.23% odds-on/odds-against shots for Pipe<br>6.32% odds-on/odds-against shots for all other trainers
No advantage? :confused:
I think that proves the point.
Many more of Pipe’s horses are odds on, as you say, 18% as opposed to 6% for other trainers.
BUT, in the shake up the percentage of odds-on winners is the same for pipe as other trainers. (59% vs 64%. statistically not a significant difference).
I think we can infer from this that people BELIEVE Pipe’s horses to be better, hence the lower prices, but there isn’t that much differnece.
Or something.
Those are indeed interesting figures.  They actually show that 4/10 odds on favs get beat across the board over 3 seasons.  It just goes to show that no horse is a cert.  Not even a Pipe/McCoy charge.
They also show that, apart from the odds-on factor, the pipe advantage revolves around sheer numbers of fancied runners. The ‘strike rate’ remains static right across the board. An education for me that’s for sure.
(Edited by Racing Daily at 11:05 am on Aug. 29, 2002)
Looks like this debate has trancended the barriers of TRF. Take a look at this article at GG.com –
It shows that people do read what we have to say here.
RD,
I have a strange yet compelling feeling that said article was penned by a member of this very forum – will AP’s anonymous defender please make themselves known……
<br>                    :scratchchin:
<br>….come on – you know you want to!
Hmmmm, the gears of the RD mindset have just gone into 2nd.
I wonder, where is the ‘ggman’? Come on down!
On second thoughts, i’d better not ask that question LMAO Don’t want to get any ‘needle’ over it ;)
McCoy is a different class! What determination and drive. The job is about winning, not being stylish – McCoy is a winner.
Pipe supplies plenty of ammo, anyone can be Champ riding for Pipe…..did Bridgwater achieve it?<br>
Will you ever see a better ride than the one MCCoy has given Tiger Grass at Perth today. Absolutely brilliant.<br>A battle!! of the complete dodgepots (Johnsons Art doesn’t like winning either). <br>How Pipe has managed to win four in a row with this horse beggars belief. What a combination they are.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.