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In this years Champion Hurdle we moved into a new era and those who can’t see that are truly misguided IMO.
Since Istabraq retired we have had below average performances one after another.
Sure you can admire Hardy Eustace for what he has achieved at Cheltenham he’s alikeable horse but he is along way from being a Champion Hurdler if the word Champion is to come into play.
Horses like Istabraq, Bula, Persian War Monksfield Night Nurse Sea Pigeon etc., were Champions in every sense of the word. Bula went unbeaten for yonks taking on the best around and was trtruly a Champion whereas Hardy Eustace lost more races than a bad selling plater.
He was without the doubt the best around at the time but never could you compare him to Katchit.
Katchit went virtually all of last season as the best 4 year old seen for years. He anihalted a decent field in the Triumph and repeated the dosage at Aintree.
Because of his size and the act Alan King decided on a different approach many people doubted he would be in the reckoning for the Champion Hurdle. A few of us read the wrinting on the wall differently and believed that come Champion Hurdle day the old Katchit would emerge.
Although I personally never lost faith in him I did think Sixing Europe was the best of the newcomers and they way he won the AIG I couldn’t imagine Katchit holding him off. However injury put toll to his chanaces (NOTE MP) not the lack of ability and iunless many good judges are deaf dumb and blind he would have surely gone close.
Of the old breed we had Sublimity and a rejuvinated Harchibald. They were well and trully stuffed at Cheltenham and at Punchestown another new kid on the block once again put them in their place.
It’s all right being wise after the fact and making excuses for them but many people thought one or the other would go close or even win.
So either both of them have gone back a mile at the same time or Katchit truly is in a different class to Sublimity Harchibald and even Hardy Eustace.
When Alan King decided to let him go in the KIngwell he put p an outstaning performance. The race was run exactly the way John Quinn had hoped yet his Blythe Knight looked very very ordinary. He may not be a champion Hurdle horse but in a race like that Blythe Knight is the last horse you would want coming up your backside 2 from home in a small field.
The way Katchit quickened from the front that day was an excellent performance and he gone to the Champion Hurdle with one ain in mind……Hit the front 3 from home and play catch me if you can…..exactly what he did in the Triumph.
You have to remember this was a well laid out pan and executed to perfection……you need a damn good horse to do that in the Champion Hurdle.
I think many people are underestiamting Katchit simply because they couldn’t see the wood for looking at the trees. Take away his two losses when he was without doubt undercooked(you could almost say not off) and this is one exceptional horse who has won 10 of those 11 other races. None of the winners between he and istabraq come anywhere close to a record like that.
If ever a horse deserved to be called Champion in the true sense of the word it’s Katchit IMO and he should not be underestimated.
I am a huge fan of Binocular and as I said minutes after Newbury he is one of the nicest hurdlers I have seen in years…He has the making of being a great Champion Hurdler but all he has right now is potential…..Sure I fancy him I backed him for next year at 22/1 for plenty before Aintree but I am not kidding myself that I am on some good thing…….Katchit is going to be one tuff nut to crack next year when he truly should come of age whereas Binocular has it all to do…….another 5 year old to win the Champion Hurdle? That is one talll order and Katchit may become yet another dual winner ,as he has the class to do so.
Fist, Katchit went virtually all of last season being the best juvenile seen for a year – not years. Perhaps you’ve forgotten about the ill-fated Detroit City?
For me, the 2m hurdlers are still in a state of transition post-Istabraq, and were still waiting for a truly top-class animal to emerge.
Based on his performances prior to the Festival this season, I doubt very much whether that is going to be Katchit (nothwithstanding the fact that he is game and thoroughly genuine) – even with another year on his back.
Very good post Fist. Well put togther and you didnt lose your temper once
Grasshopper…
Shouldnt you be looking at his last two races rather than the prelimaries? Might be worth considering that Brave Inca’s first season out of novice company didnt produce a win until his seventh race. And he was a six year old (rather than a five) stepping upFist, Katchit went virtually all of last season being the best juvenile seen for a year – not years. Perhaps you’ve forgotten about the ill-fated Detroit City?
For me, the 2m hurdlers are still in a state of transition post-Istabraq, and were still waiting for a truly top-class animal to emerge.
Based on his performances prior to the Festival this season, I doubt very much whether that is going to be Katchit (nothwithstanding the fact that he is game and thoroughly genuine) – even with another year on his back.
Just a personal thing but I was never a huge fan of Detroit City although he was a very very good horse on his day……he lacked something for me.
It wasn’t the fact that Katchit one the Triumph and everything else it was the manner in which he did it……..he blew me away but DC never…….how good was Detroit City is hard to estimate due to him being an unwell horse…..to be fair ro all you can only say he could have been brilliant.had he not have gone wrong would he have won Sublimity’s CH?…..I would have to say yes as it was one crap race IMO. Winning the alst one would have been much more difficult.
David has had a rush of the blood to the head with Binny fever…boy do I hope he’s right
Grasshopper…
Shouldnt you be looking at his last two races rather than the prelimaries? Might be worth considering that Brave Inca’s first season out of novice company didnt produce a win until his seventh race. And he was a six year old (rather than a five) stepping upclivex, when I’m talking about a genuinely top-class 2m hurdler in the Istabraq mould, and whether Katchit looks capable of reaching that kind of level, then no, I don’t.
I’m well aware of Katchit’s merit’s – I just don’t see that he is any better/worse than Hardy Eustace, Brave Inca and a few other Champion Hurdles since Istabraq. He’s a shi*tload better than Hors la Loi though.
I suspect he may turn out to be a couple pounds better than some of those (just a feeling and age on his side of course), but agree….not an Istabraq…
Binocular is the next coming of Istabraq
Does that make Jered Persian War?
No – Pridwell!
Clive it astounds me that you have so much time for Katchit. I remember at the height of Brave Inca’s reign you were slamming the horse as he “was not a Championâ€
Since when is katchit a poorer version of brave inca? Thats just your green tinted opinion… Shall we take a line through sublimity?
Not only that, at similar stages of their careers, Katchit had achieved far more than Brave Inca.
The problem i have is not with those that rate Katchit as a fair to decent CH winner but with those who (having been laughably dismissive beforehand) are now trying to assert that he was a "poor" winner, without giving the slightest indication why
The point of this thread is that the subsequent performance of Punjabi has made such assertions even less believable
Your comparing two different types of horse at the same stage…that is why I included the point- as of now.
Brave Inca was a 9 time Grade 1 winner…..including 2 Irish Champion Hurdles, a Supreme Novice, a Hattons Grace, a couple of Christmas Hurdles and of course the Champion Hurdle itself. Katchit may go on to surpass that level (he is on 4 already but 3 of which were confined to juveniles) but he has to go on and do it.
But you failed to address the point, why try lavish the praise on the current Champion when Brave Inca (a horse with a similar laborous style) was undermined by yourself for that very reason?
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Fist
When (or if
) Katchit wins another Champion Hurdle, and then places in the next 2, you might then begin comparing him to Hardy Eustace. In the meanwhile, all you have is your own opinion.
Fwiw, I thought at the time that had it been Peter – rather than Tom – Scudamore on Osana, Katchit would still not have won any.
Nothing I’ve seen since has changed that view.OK now it’s time for my objective view (those that know me through my posts will know that I’m always objective when it comes to Katchit)
There is no doubt that he’s a very good horse – only time will tell if he will become a great, but already he embodies characteristics that make him a very popular horse and loved by us
He’s found this season against older horses hard and managed to get beaten into third at Newcastle off a false pace and then a swift change of plan went undercooked into the Bula and still managed to finish 2nd when Osana stole the race
Note at this point that he’s still never been outside of the first 3… (and only Al Eile has finished in front of him and hasn’t subsequently had the form reversed – but then we haven’t raced him again after Newcastle)
The ground at Cheltenham went against us (despite what the commentators may have felt – he does go on anything but is much better on better ground), and yet he still managed to get up and win by a mile (allow me that little fantasy)
Right now, we and the yard expect him to come back better and stronger next year… of course Binocular is a worry but as Fist points out, has it all to do to prove his credentials in what will be just as tough a year for him…
so think we’ll have a very real chance at defending the title and without this years conditions, much more emphatically than this year.and before the responses.. I know, it’s not remotely objective but who cares
Your comparing two different types of horse at the same stage…that is why I included the point- as of now.
Brave Inca was a 9 time Grade 1 winner…..including 2 Irish Champion Hurdles, a Supreme Novice, a Hattons Grace, a couple of Christmas Hurdles and of course the Champion Hurdle itself. Katchit may go on to surpass that level (he is on 4 already but 3 of which were confined to juveniles) but he has to go on and do it.
But you failed to address the point, why try lavish the praise on the current Champion when Brave Inca (a horse with a similar laborous style) was undermined by yourself for that very reason?
I am right behind Clive here with regards to Brave Inca he simply wasn’t in Katchit’s class over hurdles.
He went to into the 2007 Champion Hurdle on the back of 2 wins and a 2nd in grade 1 races and finished second in one of the worst Champion Hurdles I have ever seen a year after he won another poor Champion Hurdle himself…….a fact that many many people agree on……..Hardy Eustace and he started 2nd and 3rd favourite and were not being touted as back numbers before the race..far from it. They were both beaten hands down by a horse who is now considered moderate by most but was a good thing for the CH in the eyes of many only weeks ago.
I love the Champion Hurdle it is and always has been my favourite race of the season but I wouldn’t have crossed the road to watch Brave Inca Hardy Eustace but I would cross oceans to see Binocular and Katchit fight it out next year if that turns out to be the case………..Next year could end up being one of the best Champion Hurdles seen since the days of Sea Pigeon Night Nurse and Monksfield who were giants in comparison to HE and BI………
We have Binocular the most exciting propect I have seen since Persian War..if he improves from 4 to 5 he could virtually be unbeatable……
Punjabi who seems to be getting better every time he runs and had he not been ridden for a place in the Champion Hurdle would have surely finished closer. The way he has improved this season who knows he might end up being the stables number 1
Katchit himself who is now at the head of things.
Osana or Ashkazar will be blazing the trail for Pipe again..
Jered who Tony McCoy reckons could be a future Champion Hurdle winner.
Captain Cee Bee who flopped at Aintree which seemed to be par for the course with Cheltenham winners this year……that was most likely to do with the conditions and horses not getting over their excersions…….he is definately a top class horse despite Aintree.
Crack Away Jack is a horse I really like, who if was with a big named yard wouldn’t be anything like 40/1 for next years race. He improved with every run last year and IMO will be very hard to beat no matter where he runs next season.
When I look at that lot and think back to Hardy Eustace and the horses around during that era there is simply no comparison. The only horse that gave me a buzz I normally get from Champion Hurdle contenders was Harchibald who for some debateable reason didn’t go through with it when it mattered. The 2005 bunch……Rooster Booster Intersky Falcon Mac’s Joy etc just and ordinary bunch making up numbers IMO..certainly none of them had the potential we have in Katchit’s era.
I am right behind Clive here with regards to Brave Inca he simply wasn’t in Katchit’s class over hurdles.
Hoho!! Good one, Fist – you’ve got me pi*ssing myself laughing at that one.
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