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Boscobels Ascot victory was widely lauded.The denial of the chance to do the same at the Curragh goes unmentioned.More Wells suffering form spoiler tactics at Leopardstown barely raises a ripple.A four horse race at Goodwood8won byOgee) provides a fascinating tactical battle and a tight finish.
If you’ve got enough money to despoil any chance that a front runner has,the shape of the race is in your hands.Pacemakers are by definition not running to achieve the best possible finishing position.
This kind of idiocy rains in the men’s 1500m at the Olympics.Previously there was a qualifying heat,two semi finals and a final containing particpants there on merit.Nowadays the qualifying standard is so high,and attained in lead up races that are inevitably a world record attempt for the current no. 1.These race are never about tactical and finishing speed as they once were..Add to that the fact that there are only two semi’s and a final and you get a coronation for the gullible televisual audience.Can you see the parallel with ignorant money in racing?
So then you come to the Breeder’s Cup for example which is a meritocracy if nothing else,nobody prepared to overplay their hand,and european form doesn’t work out,(even when they win)Down among the real racing community OR70-110 the notion of a pacemaker is laughable and results are a testament to horses various attributes(gate speed, the ability to relax in running,determination in a finish,durabilty etc).
The difficulty placing a horse like Salute highlights the contempt with which the above mentioned qualities are overlooked in favour of this group racing nonsense.The idea of group classifiacation is nothing more than a means of numerifying races for the illiterate, in terms of an individual race’s worthyness.I was 10 years old when I could tell you that the Sheepsheadbay h’cap was a top race for fillies and mares and I lived half a world away without internet or any media other than the occasional Bloodhorse.Withdraw funding for all group racing and let them self finance,and use the savings to finance handicappers to race in a series qualify dependent finals that can be run at both level weights and within a narrow weight band, as the americans do.
More notes on the revolution are available upon request..
“A farce of a race – the form of which should be dismissed – with XXXXXXX XXXXXXX taking off with his rider and quickly establishing a clear lead, which he never looked like relinquishing. That he won by such a wide margin is not an accurate reflection of his superiority, but merely lends weight to the fact that all the other riders failed to shine by varying degrees. Quite how they allowed the winner to build up such a lead while they travelled at no more than a canter through the first few furlongs beggars belief, even allowing for their relative inexperience.”
I didn’t know you had been at Kranji recently Naps –
Actually Kingston, it’s a race one of my horses ran in a few years ago and finished 2nd….that’s why it’s so embedded in my memory!
So are people 100% happy with pacemakers ?
Are they not an unfair advantage to the wealthy racehorse owners and large stables ?
Interesting you say that – I haven’t seen a Godolphin pacemaker for a couple of years now. Heck … could have been when Blatant set the tempo in a King George or similar race and ended up beating the main Godolphin horse home.
Why is everyone folding their hands so quickly?
Yes Anzum. It was the QEII with Richard Hills on board and with a soft lead he was able to beat his stablemate Noverre.
it’s happened a few time with O’Briens horses
That is one of the problems of multiple runners.You get in your own way.If you watch last year’s Juddmont International at York,Duke of Marmalade did Dylan Thomas no favors and visa versa; your ownyard can be as big a problem as your opponents.Typically this evening at the Curragh two of O’Briens horses got to bumping each other in the first race. The stewards came to the rescue of the yard by giving O’Brien the race over Bolger’s horse on the slimmest of grounds IMO.
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