Usain Bolt is not amused by, nor endorsed the contents of this thread.

i think he should challenge CD to a match race.

mnr race 2 27with 8 10 exactas 8 to win

it would feel wonderful.

Perfect trip by Curlin, perfect ride by Albarado. Just got run down by horses that had never been the distance.

He did a GREAT job handicapping the first 5 races, which put him in position to make a score in the Classic. :tro:

:$: :tro: :$: :tro:

agreed. :D

now, am i the only one calling bullsh!t when jess jackson was being interviewed before the race, or is it the cynic in me rearing it's head? he gave all those wonderful, flowery reasons for running curlin this year. but do we really believe it was for sportsmanship, for the game, the horses legacy, etc? or was it the only choice due to the legalities surrounding the horse? i think it's because not one stud farm out there would touch him because of midnight cry, and all the surrounding issues to go with it.

it might even feel better than how i felt watching casino drive fade from view.

Thanks Mig!

Horrible ride, Albarado was out rode by smarter and better jockeys all three in which finished in front of him. It was not the surface either, it was poor decision making and a awful judge of pace.

With that slow pace(which was a given when one read the PP's), why not wait a little longer, save ground, and make a run for the wire in the stretch??

IMO... He rode the horse like the win was a guarantee and the only thing that was of concern was by how many lengths were to be between him and the field.

To the thread topic, Curlin was/is not the best in 25 years. I would not have thought so if he had won this race by 32 lengths. This field was very questionable, with no real legit G1 winners other than the Euros.

Where are they teaching this approach? :rolleyes:

blame the jock university?

I think NowNowNow's performance in the 11th will go a long way towards confirming or refuting this claim. He was best last out but had ZERO chance the way the course was playing.

Seemed like the finishers were all keying on Curlin . Hard to win when you are marked like that. But that's the clarity of hind sight .

This is the approach Albarado should have taken instead of riding the race like the win was a formality and the only thing in question was how many he was going be ahead by when he crossed the wire.

I do not know where they teach it, but apparently the Euro's are subscribing to it.

Raven's Pass
 

I took a some flak from a certain party for the posting below (on the "discuss the 3 Euros thread"), especially the part about superior milers being able to stretch out. I had watched this horse race on British TV and in person at Newmarket and thought I had something to share. Now may I please gloat a little in his general direction?<that's a paraphrase of a famous line in Monty Python and the Holy Grail>

I'd also like to point out that on the same thread Linny took up the case for Conduit, while pointing out that the better US turf runners include many who had been below the first rank over in Europe. Well done, Linny.

"Raven's Pass is one tough customer; he doesn't go under without a fight. His losses, apart from those at the straight track at Newmarket, are none of them over 1.5 lengths. He was very good early at 2, and was beaten only a head by champion 2yo and subsequent Derby winner New Approach in the Dewhurst S(G1), which is Britain's championship event for 2yos. He went a long stretch over the spring and summer without a win (behind Henry 3 times), but seemed to have taken heart from his G3 win in August to finally peg back Henry in the QEII and may be maturing later than that one. His half-brother Gigawatt certainly seems to have gone through a 'dead zone' at three after having been a SW at 2 before having his best years as an older horse; he was a dirt horse AND a turf horse.

"The major knock against Raven's Pass is that he has never run at a distance beyond 8f. Sire Elusive Quality and half-bro Gigawatt were also milers, so one must wonder about his effectiveness at 10f. But his quality is quite high - they have a darned good group of 3yos in Europe this year - which can carry milers another couple furlongs beyond their optimum trip. And, oh yes, Raven's Pass has also won on a left-handed course."