The Horse racing thread

[Donnellys Hollow]

Sir Peter O'Sullevan - the voice of racing RIP

"this is the champion, this is the best we've seen for a long time"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PDNPTJs4PU

"the mare's beginning to get up"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iC9dRA15F9s

[50fiftyball]

The game changer @14/1 (that was last night)

for the galway hurdle today.

[Donnellys Hollow]

Golden Horn v Gleneagles v Time Test v The Grey Gatsby

Mighty race in prospect on Wednesday.

[beer baron]

Golden Horn v Gleneagles v Time Test v The Grey Gatsby

Mighty race in prospect on Wednesday.

Could be a cracker. Anyone bookies going to put their balls  in the chopper and push Golden Horn out to evens? I've been very impressed with him, i know Frankie can talk a lot of rubbish at times but the way he speaks about GH i think we might still have more to see from him and could see something special this week.

[Donnellys Hollow]

Golden Horn's form with Jack Hobbs is top class considering what that colt did at the Curragh. I wasn't as taken with him at Sandown where it seemed to take him an age to get the better of The Grey Gatsby who now has less weight to concede. I suspect he will prove better over 12f than 10f.

Gleneagles is fascinating over this trip. He's a cracking miler and if he doesn't win this they can offer the stamina excuse straight away and drop him back to a mile at Keeneland in October and then retire him to Fethard after. His pedigree gives some encouragement. Galileo obviously is a serious stamina influence on the sire side. The dam Youresothrilling won twice over 6f at Naas and Newmarket but they did try her in the Prix de l'Opera on Arc weekend in her final run. She was a full sister to the great Giants Causeway who earned his rep at 10f. Gleneagle's full sister Marvellous also won a heavy ground maiden over a mile before running down the field in both the English and Irish Oaks. There's another 2yo full sister called Coolmore who should be out in a maiden in the next few weeks.

[beer baron]

Only seeing the race now. To say i'm shocked is an understatement, Gh came there with every chance but wasn't tough enough, he was keen early but i still expected him to put it to bed in the last furlong. We might get to see him over here now though on a recovery mission.

[Donnellys Hollow]

Strongly rumoured that David O'Meara is to replace Aidan O'Brien at Ballydoyle.

[beer baron]

Strongly rumoured that David O'Meara is to replace Aidan O'Brien at Ballydoyle.

I'd laugh this off if someone else said it but not from you DH. Would be some shock were it to happen. Aidan must be going the jumping route then with Joey as retainer?

[Donnellys Hollow]

There were whispers that things have not been good for a few years. Australia getting beaten at Leopardstown last year was the final straw which prompted the move to get Ryan Moore and that caused more friction. Aidan and Anne Marie have been building Piltown back up over the last few years and Joseph had a few spins over hurdles last winter so this was always on the cards at some stage. For all his flaws Aidan has few equals around the world and I think John Magnier would be mad not to do everything in his power to keep him at Rosegreen.

[Donnellys Hollow]

End of an era as the great Hurricane Fly is retired.

[beer baron]

End of an era as the great Hurricane Fly is retired.

What a star!

I remember you saying he was a little bit special very early in his career and i kept an eye on him and was thinking you could be onto something and when i seen him in the flesh laughing at Solwhit in the Autumn or Winter of 2010 i realised you were hundred percent spot on and became a massive fan(had people thanking me for telling them to back him for the 2011 Champion hurdle for about a month after the race,apparently i persuaded a full pub he was a cert in the January of that year and they availed of the juicy prices at the time).

Won a few nice bets on him but in truth i enjoyed some of his wins where i hadn't a bet(or just had peanuts on) just as much. His win in the Irish Champion hurdle last year was a really special one when Our Conor and Jezki were expected to take his crown off him and coming up to the last he looked like his goose might be cooked but not a bit of it was he having .

Be interesting to see what tribute he gets, i'd say there'll be some kind of statue up in Leopardstown anyway but any chance they'll rename the Irish Champion hurdle after him? 

One things for certain it'll be a long time before i ever enjoy a horses career as much as his.

[Donnellys Hollow]

He had amazing longevity for a Montjeu. As a 3yo he beat Literato who went on to win a Champion Stakes and finished close up behind Lawman who won a French Derby. It's very rare for a flat horse of that level of ability to go on and excel over jumps. Istabraq was bred to be a classic horse as a three parts brother to Secreto but he was backward and one paced on the flat.

His National Hunt record speaks for itself:

11211/131/1111/1131/11111/1114/21113-26

I don't think he fully got the credit that his talents deserved until he was past his peak, across the water moreso than at home. Incredible horse.

[Donnellys Hollow]

It looks like all this rain could decimate the two potentially brilliant cards declared for this weekend. The field for the Champion Stakes looks ridiculously good but it must be odds against now that all 8 run.

[beer baron]

How's the ground likely to ride today DH? Is there enough rain for forgotten rules? What about the stewards at Doncaster? Looked harsh to my eyes.

[Donnellys Hollow]

I thought the stewards got it right at Doncaster. O'Donoghue was entitled to hold his line and keep Atzeni in a pocket, that's good race riding. Atzeni simply has to sit and suffer and wait until a gap opens. He decided to just barge his way out, interfering with O'Donoghue's horse who was knocked off his line. From there to the winning post was six of one, half a dozen of the other. The damage was done by Atzeni's first manoeuvre. Had the winning distance been more than a head it might have been a different story. The problem is that the UK and to a lesser extent the Irish stewards generally leave too much go and go too far down the road of "the best horse" keeping the race.

The Leopardstown one was different because it wasn't a riding offence. Frankie was keeping a straight line and the horse just spooked at something. It was tough on Free Eagle who travelled like the best horse in the race. If Found hadn't have split the pair then Free Eagle's connections might have had a good case to get the race in the stewards' room.

The vibes on course for Forgotten Rules weren't great yesterday and my guess is that Ascot left it's mark on him. He didn't leave himself down on that firm ground and it may take him some time to get over that experience. The winner looks a very smart stayer in the making. He was punted off the boards and duly bolted up. He would have probably won at Doncaster if they had decided to take that route instead.