Kopeck De Mee

[apracing]

What an utterly feeble statement by the UK handicapper, quoted as follows in the Post:

“He had a French mark meaning all we could do was use our normal procedure. We’ve given him 136 after following our standard way of conversion from the French model of two kilos, and he was 68 kilos [in France].

“The conversion used to be 2.2kgs, but we changed it to two kilos a few years ago. So while handicapping him was straightforward, ideally we would have seen the horse in Britain or Ireland and have had a better knowledge of his form. We’re restricted on what we can do.”

The race he won that gave him that French mark was on May 8th last year. He hasn’t raced anywhere since, so his mark is unchanged. BUT – the runner-up from that race hasn’t run over hurdles since, but the third has. He’s called Zephyr De Beaumont and he finished just over 5L behind Kopeck De Mee, giving him 1kg. So on that form Kopeck De Mee is approx a 2kg better horse of the pair.

Zephyr De Beaumont went on to run three time in the autumn of 2024, winning a Listed hurdle at Compiegne before finishing second in the 4yo championship Grade 1 contest, the Prix Renaud De Vivier. Form which saw his French handicap mark raised to 72.5kgs, which converts to 145 UK.

But because the French system doesn’t retrospectively raise handicap ratings based on subseqent form of beaten horses, Kopeck De Mee wasn’t affected by this evidence. The Uk handicapper certainly does raise ratings based on, to use their own words, ‘collateral form’.

So saying ‘we’re restricted on what we can do’ is simply an easy cop out. If our handicapper had chosen to react to the form shown by Zephyr De Beaumont, connections would have zero grounds for complaint. Kopeck De Mee could be rated 145 here and that might still be considered generous.

[TheBluesBrother]

Does Kopeck DE Mee French form amount to anything?

He won at Auteuil carrying only 10-6 and earned a RPR of 128, which converts to an OR 121 on my NH hurdles conversion table.

The BHA has allocated an official rating of 136, which converts to a RPR 143 a +15lb difference.

[TakeYourTime]

There seems to be one of these talking horses from France ahead of every Festival nowadays but how many of them actually win? Gaelic Warrior was beaten as a juvenile as was Bad for Ben Pauling, both of whom were apparently stones ahead of the handicapper.

I’m happy to let Kopeck De Mee run without my money on. If he wins he wins. I don’t have an issue with his rating.

[Author]

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