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Oh dear Oh dear Oh dear …..
Mr Chapman has just completely ****** up the 4.50 at Lingfield what a shambles of a commentary.
This may end his commentary career
Was the error before they turn in for home??? the ATR replay is edited and dosnt show the start…. in hindsight, its not a bad thing his voice being edited out of course!
Must just be me then maybe it was because I watched it as it went out and am seeing things that are not there.
I don’t think declaring Frankie has it before the line when another horse is clearly running on them proclaiming its too close to call when you can clearly see the running on horse won even without a slow mo reply and then babbling away trying to justify why you got it wrong and continuely repeating "that was desparate".
Plus in the 5.50 he was saying the jockey in the yellow cap running the best of them all when it clearly was doing nothing and never got into the top 5 anyway round the track and about two furlongs out saying he’s gonna have to make his move now when it was doing nothing.
or John Hickman
I used to like John Hickman’s calls, Used to a odd meeting at Newcastle. He was clearly well regarded in his younger days calling the big meetings at Kempton Sandown Ascot etc. He used to do the monday cards also at Windsor and Bath, whichever one was on, chepstow used to be one of his haunts as well.
If you had said Newton Or Orkney I could understand
Sorry Matt but you are just not a commentator.
I watched the Lingfield replays via the ATR site this evening and he is the only "commentator" that I’d consider muting or fast forwarding to the end of the race….or both!
What next – Willie Carson in the box when the Beeb lose their coverage at the end of the year.
He’s at Newton Abbot today…someone needs to tell him that the one before the straight isnt a water jump anymore !
AARGH! He’s spreading! Please Matt, give it up. There’s a difference between a presenter and a commentator. You might just get away with being labelled as the first, but definitely not the second. Leave it to the professionals.
Has he done any Racing UK tracks yet?
Has he done any courses you would call the larger ones or is he just doing the small ones for now?
Believe he’s only contracted to commentate on ATR and not Racing UK courses – thank god. I know the powers at be think he’s a wonderful breath of fresh sir but I don’t. I’d even prefer to hear John Hunt, again
You’re fortunate if you only hear Chapman’s race commentary, he is even worse pre-race. Even Mick Fitz was absolutely sick of him today at Newton Abbott and was heard to say, "I’m absolutely sick of him, it’s alright for you back in the studio you can’t hear him, it’s like he’s got diarrhoea or something". and this was pre-race.
Verbal diarrhoea is the best description and I would be absolutely gutted if I went to a meeting and he was commentating.
About 12 months ago in his Q&A Rod Street of Racing for Change in reply to me stated that he was going to get the days commentator published in the Racing Post and on the BHA website, since when absolutely nothing’s happened on the subject. A bit like the large number cloths, about half the tracks don’t bother but nothing is ever done about it.It’s amazing the amount of abuse Matt Chapman is getting on another forum. Dozens of almost universally hostile comments about his commentaries at Newton Abbot.
I am looking forward to watching the video of At The Races featuring Newton Abbot, not least because I find Matt’s commentaries strangely fascinating now.
Interesting to hear from Yeats about Mick Fitzgerald’s comments. Beneath the veneer of chumminess, there is a lot of hostility towards Matt among the presenters and other commentators.
He has toned down his commentaries a bit but it’s a real shame he hasn’t got the self-awareness to just do it straight instead of using the ridiculous modulations of voice and over-exaggerated, attention-seeking antics that provoke all the hostility.
Tommo continues to get a lot of stick on the same forum. I have just watched the first of his commentaries from Pontefract tonight in a race in which a jockey was unseated shortly after the off. For some reason, Tommo didn’t say who the jockey was and instead settled for telling us: "It’s all happening here."
We did get the usual many compulsory mentions of the favourite, though, which I actually like. Looking forward to watching the rest of the races on sportinglife.com.You’re fortunate if you only hear Chapman’s race commentary, he is even worse pre-race. Even Mick Fitz was absolutely sick of him today at Newton Abbott and was heard to say, "I’m absolutely sick of him, it’s alright for you back in the studio you can’t hear him, it’s like he’s got diarrhoea or something". and this was pre-race.
Verbal diarrhoea is the best description and I would be absolutely gutted if I went to a meeting and he was commentating.
About 12 months ago in his Q&A Rod Street of Racing for Change in reply to me stated that he was going to get the days commentator published in the Racing Post and on the BHA website, since when absolutely nothing’s happened on the subject. A bit like the large number cloths, about half the tracks don’t bother but nothing is ever done about it.Extremelyn harsh – where is the thread about last Sundays Prix du Jockey Club commentary? It was absolutely awful – the winner wasn’t even mentioned until pulling up after the race. Obviously Mr. Chapman is fairer game for the masses.
I think he has improved. Commentating on a race is by no means easy and most do a pretty good job. I think Chapman is technically ok, it’s just the waffle he comes out with, especially at the end of races, that spoils it. If he just kept to the facts of what is happening in the race I thnk he could be pretty good.
I think he has improved. Commentating on a race is by no means easy and most do a pretty good job. I think Chapman is technically ok, it’s just the waffle he comes out with, especially at the end of races, that spoils it. If he just kept to the facts of what is happening in the race I thnk he could be pretty good.
What you describe as "waffle" others would describe as a trademark. I wish Matt was commentating on the Jockey Club, but of course he is an easy target. Slag away, tally ho!
I think he has improved. Commentating on a race is by no means easy and most do a pretty good job. I think Chapman is technically ok, it’s just the waffle he comes out with, especially at the end of races, that spoils it. If he just kept to the facts of what is happening in the race I thnk he could be pretty good.
What you describe as "waffle" others would describe as a trademark. I wish Matt was commentating on the Jockey Club, but of course he is an easy target. Slag away, tally ho!
That depends if you want your commentators to have a ‘trademark’. I’d rather they just got on with reading the race without trying to create a personality and diverting attention on themselves.
I caught a race tonight from Brighton with David Fitzgerald giving an excellent understated commentary, that’s what Chapman should be doing, not going over the top.
I caught a race tonight from Brighton with David Fitzgerald giving an excellent understated commentary, that’s what Chapman should be doing, not going over the top.
I’ll set the video for the Racing Review tomorrow and watch the Brighton races. He’s certainly getting about and doing well, young David. Watched the replays from all three days at Cartmel and thoroughly enjoyed his efforts. Did a good job at Pontefract recently as well.
I just cannot understand why Matt Chapman continues to bring ridicule and criticism on himself. You would think he would ask himself a few questions and realise that he needs to moderate his over-the-top tendencies.
He’s good at what he does, in that he’s got a very good eye and plenty of ability and versatility. Perhaps its arrogance or taking having a rhino hide to the extreme but it’s very sad that he hasn’t got more self-awareness or that the powers-that-be don’t make efforts to rein him in.
I find it all amusing, rather than annoying, now and have built up my tolerance, but if people were regularly criticising me for the way I did my job, I would like to think I would try to modify my behaviour and take some of the comments on board.
He’s toned it down a bit but obviously not enough for many people’s liking.
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