Afrashad
 

Holy Shnikies.....1:08....damn

kev,what was excuse for E.C. in the B.C. TURF ? Distnce,competition,or condition of Belmont turf that day?

IMO Scuds...competition. He was a 3YO racing against some of Europes best olders. He was the top finishing (5th place) American horse that day. I think he is a better horse this year as a 4YO.

I dont think the distance (1 1/2 was a problem). His prior race, he ran a very game 2nd to another great turf horse in Shakespeare.

EC can handle just about any turf. He has won on firm and yielding both. I watched it DOWNPOUR last year 15-20 minutes before the VA Derby at Colonial and he had no problem moving across the soft going that day.

Yes,but he lost to a lesser horse than himself on an off turf course at Arlington.

EXACTLY...BOOTLEG HORSE....no shot today

Arlington turf is never really kind to horses up front. Tends to play more towards horses off the pace.

The race at Arlington, JV had him in the lead too early. EC needs a target to run making the turn for home. On that day, he was in the lead and was the target himself. GUn Salute got a really good run on him that day, but EC still should have won.

Problem is today his target may be a horse with a lot of energy left, one who gets to cut slow fractions. Other scenario is EC is the pacesetter, not sure if he can win today like that.

Nice horse, VERY unsound....did you see the way he got out to the middle of the track at the sixteenth pole once he finally swapped leads late?....unfortunately, doesn't look like one that will hold up for long :(

Joel, I noticed the same thing... hope he came out of the race ok.

Wait a minute..
 

Why does English Channel or the other 2 near-miss Manhattanites need any "excuse"... Four horses within a length at the end... NO ONE needs an excuse. They all ran great, particularly Gesture, and ANY could have had a picture taken had the line been 5 yards in either direction.

I don't understand the expectation that ANY horse, no matter how good coming in, is obligated to win EVERY time out at that level of competition...

Great race period..

I said earlier in the week that EC was no lock. That race was too wide open to even remotely think that anyhorse was a cinch in that race.