Quote:
Originally Posted by King Glorious
I don’t think Flightline should be the 3yo champion but I’d like to ask you if you think he is the best 3yo? Not best resume but best horse?
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Sprinters are always inferior to routers. Stamina is a key component of the classic Thoroughbred. That's why back in the days of logic and common sense there were no Grade 1 sprints except for maybe the Vosburgh.
That's not to say Flightline is a sprinter, but he has only run in sprints up to this point. And just because he is by Tapit or has won geared down in sprints that weren't even conducted like true sprints (more like team workouts) doesn't mean he is certain to stretch out with no problems.
On top of that his inexperience and lack of consistent racing makes him vulnerable in a route even if he is ultimately capable of it.
He might be no better than Rail Trip, who was a fine racehorse with a somewhat similar late-starting profile (until his career was needless de-Railed by his silly owner). I highly doubt he is as good as Formal Gold and certainly won't come close to emulating that one's 4yo campaign.
In this day and age, given the silly hype that has been showered on this horse and his connections, Flightline will be retired with a bullet if he happens to get beat like Formal Gold did in the 1996 Pennsylvania Derby or Rail Trip in the 2009 Mervyn LeRoy, even though it wasn't the end of the world for the latter two.
So let's hope he doesn't struggle in his next start if he happens to race before the Met Mile.