Greg Wood commenting on his column re: the Arc or America dilemma:
For as long as Champions Day sits between Paris and America, it will force owners to send a horse to two out of three, and the benefit of extra time to recover means that will, in many cases, be the events on either side of Ascot.
It’s just stupid that they should need to choose at all. Put Champions Day in the right place and you have the makings of a modern Triple Crown, on offer to a horse that can win at Ascot, Longchamp and then in America. What an achievement that would be.
Indeed! It’s hard not to like a proposed schedule that makes the Breeders’ Cup the culmination of a top-tier international season, but there’s a disjunction between audiences that weakens the likelihood of such a set-up, even if the BHA succeeded in finessing the scheduling issues involved — the BC dirt races don’t stir Euro passion, and the turf races are secondary to Americans. On this side of the Atlantic, whether Champions Day is in September or October is all the same to many fans. On the other side, the question is why bother?
Posted by JC in Racing on 08/28/2012 @ 9:40 am / Tagged Breeders' Cup, Champions Day, International, Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, UK / Follow @railbird on Twitter
Mike Watchmaker on the Travers:
Alpha looked like he was going to win a few strides before the wire, but he was unable to completely close the deal. It was almost as if no one really wanted it.
That’s the trouble with Alpha (from this handicapper’s perspective). He’s a beautifully made and classy horse — and his exquisite pedigree and innate talent have carried him a classic distance — but he lacks the heart to live up to his name. Alpha is a yielder: Challenged, or facing a horse who wants the lead more, he hangs back. To watch the 2012 Wood Memorial, for instance, is to see a horse capable of more, but perfectly happy to run second.
Posted by JC in Racing on 08/27/2012 @ 4:29 pm / Tagged Alpha / Follow @railbird on Twitter
Dullahan has three wins in 12 starts, all in Grade 1 races, and all on Polytrack. It’s enough to conclude that the 2012 Pacific Classic winner is a Poly-monster. But, looking at recent photos of the burly Dale Romans trainee, I’m not so sure that Dullahan hasn’t just matured into an omni-monster, effective on any track surface. At this stage of his career, which includes in-the-money finishes in turf and dirt stakes, why pigeonhole him?
Addendum: Jennie Rees has a story up about Romans’ stellar year, in which she asks him whether Dullahan is a Poly-specialist: “Yeah … [b]ut that doesn’t mean he can’t do other things … his form definitely moves up on Polytrack. But he can compete on other surfaces. I still believe he can at a high level. How high, I’m not sure.” Very interesting. If Dullahan stays sound through his 4-year-old season, it should be fun to find out.
Posted by JC in Racing on 08/27/2012 @ 12:46 pm / Tagged Del Mar, Dullahan, Omnisurface Stars, Pacific Classic, Track Surfaces / Follow @railbird on Twitter
