Good God

[The Indomitable DrugS]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkbFXxCW_ps


That's how you win a horse race! Face a field of multiple other very good horses and obliterate them all with ease in fast time.

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Final times for the Ascot card today:

Race 1: 7 furlongs in 1:30.23

Race 2: 7 furlongs in 1:29.72

Race 3: 6 furlongs in 1:14.86 (Group 3)

Race 4: 1 mile in 1:41.04

Race 5: 7 furlongs in 1:26.85

Race 6: 12 furlongs in 2:26.78 (Group 1)

Race 7: 12 furlongs in 2:32.19


So, he ran 5.41 full seconds faster (or about 33 full lengths) than the winner of the very next race on the same day at the same distance.

He took a Group 1 by 11 lengths in track record time in a race where the 2nd place finisher won the Irish Derby last time out.

The 3rd place finisher has finished 2nd in the Arc three years in a row - and was beaten just a nose in a Group 1 last time out.

The 4th place finisher won a Group 1 race three starts back and was beaten just a neck in a Group 1 last time out.

The 5th place finisher won the English Derby by 7 lengths in record time last time out.


The winner carried 133lbs - while the winners of the Irish Derby and English Derby both got in at 121lbs ... a 12 pound weight break at the distance of 12 furlongs and still they couldn't get within 11 lengths today?


That winner is a total freak.

[DaTruth]

Originally Posted by The Indomitable DrugS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkbFXxCW_ps


That's how you win a horse race! Face a field of multiple other very good horses and obliterate them all with ease in fast time.

He definitely quickened nicely.

[PatCummings]

Comparing it to the other 12 furlong race should be in the context that the last race of the day was a Class 4, restricted to 3YO. Not a stellar bunch, but not awful.

[pba1817]

He ran in that spot cause he was afraid of Rachel...

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by PatCummings

Comparing it to the other 12 furlong race should be in the context that the last race of the day was a Class 4, restricted to 3YO. Not a stellar bunch, but not awful.

I was just comparing the final times. Obviously it couldn't have been a field of world beaters to say the least.

The winner of the Group 1 ran 60 Beyer points faster than the winner of that class 4.

He ran 20 points (11 lengths at 12 furlongs on Turf) faster than the 2nd place finisher... a last out Irish Derby winner.

There's absolutely no way the winner didn't run at least a 120 Beyer - and he probably ran a 125 or faster. That was without a doubt one of the greatest performances in the history of horse racing.

When Twice Over won the Group 1 Coral Eclipse last week - he went the distance in 2:04.64. That same exact day and at the same distance .. a Class 4, restricted to 3YO went in 2:06.77 and was also won by a male.

So .. in Twice Over's case - you have a Group 1 winner running 2.13 seconds faster than a Class 4 3yo handicap winner on the same card. The spread in final time between those two class levels yesterday was an insane 5.41 seconds.

This absolutely has the look of a 125 Beyer or higher race - which is close to impossible on turf. It's impossible.

I'm going to assume the last out Irish Derby winner who finished 2nd by 11 lengths ran a 105 yesterday.

I'm going to assume that Youmzain ran a 98 while finishing 3rd by 14.5 lengths. He's an older male who's made over $6 million in his career. He always fires and he was 2nd by a nose in a Group 1 at the distance 4 weeks ago. He's been in the exacta 3 straight years in the Arc.

I'm going to assume Daryakana ran a 98. This horse is a Group 1 winner who had never been beaten more than a 1.5 lengths in an entire career. Was 4th beaten 14.5 lengths there.

I'm going to assume the supposed super horse Workforce ran a 94 Beyer. He won the English Derby by 7 lengths last time out. He was 5th beaten 17 lengths.

I'm going to assume Confront ran a 84 yesterday. He was a shorter price in the betting than both The Usual QT and Take The Points in a $5 million turf race in Dubai earlier in the year. He finished less than 4 lengths behind both of them in that race. He was last beaten 23 lengths yesterday.

I'm going to assume that the winner of the Class 4 3yo race at the same distance yesterday ran a 65 Beyer in victory. He's owned by Shiek Maktoum and is a son of Rahy with a lifetime record of 7-3-1-1. Despite the nice record, he's slower than most NY Bred maiden turfers in this country.

I hope this horse stays sound. No horse in history has ever won both the Arc and Breeders Cup Turf ... he's an absolute cinch to win both races if he holds together.

[VOL JACK]

Originally Posted by The Indomitable DrugS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkbFXxCW_ps


That's how you win a horse race! Face a field of multiple other very good horses and obliterate them all with ease in fast time.

So I guess that Sea the Stars was smart not returning this year?

[brockguy]

some performance alright - my guess is he'll get a RPR of 136 or so which puts him in Sea The Stars territory.

you can pick plenty of holes in the performance though.. I don't think he'll win the Arc

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by brockguy

some performance alright - my guess is he'll get a RPR of 136 or so which puts him in Sea The Stars territory.

you can pick plenty of holes in the performance though.. I don't think he'll win the Arc

What holes can you pick in that performance?

Was it that he didn't carry enough weight? (a mere 133lbs giving 12 away to a pair of last-out Derby winners)

Was it that he didn't run fast enough? (He shattered the course record and ran 60 Beyer points faster than a 3yo male 3-time winner at the same distance the very next race)

Was it that he didn't beat quality competition? (obviously he did - and the 4 other Group 1 winners in the race he beat were all in sharp recent form.)

The only slightest thing I can say about his performance that isn't glowing is that the two Derby winners did kind of eye-ball each other a bit early on in the race and he was behind them in a perfect targeting spot. Basically, he had a nice early position. That's the only knock I see... and few look harder for knocks than I do.

Brock - I did a whole lot of cringing last year reading all that brutal nonsense about Sea The Stars being possibly the best horse ever.

He won the Arc by 2 lengths over Youmzain carrying 9lbs less than Youmzain. Youmzain's form is as fine as ever and he was 3rd by 14+ lengths with a good trip yesterday.

Sea The Stars other celebrated wins came by just a length or so at the expense of Rip Van Winkle and Mastercraftsman ... about the only two European horses to under perform their odds on Breeders Cup Day over the last two years. They gave him a 138 when he beat Fame And Glory by 2.5 lengths .. and FaG was soundly beaten in his next two races.

Sea The Stars had a very royal pedigree, he always fired, he made the best of the fact that European racing wildly favors 3-year-olds over older horses with the extreme weight spreads they impose against olders, but he never delivered a performance even remotely like the one whatever his name is did yesterday.

By the way ... in my book, Fame and Glory has the 2nd greatest initals ever for an outstanding horse. Slightly behind Heritage of Gold. HoG and FaG

[GPK]

Peslier was chilly as can be turning for home. Touched him once on the stretch?

Brilliant to say the least.

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Here's video of his last start before yesterday ... He's 4-for-4 with all easy wins so far this year

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYaI68fHg80

This was only in a Group 2 ... but it's turned out to be an incredibly key race.

* The winner Harbinger took a Group 1 by 11 lengths at 4/1 odds next out

* 2nd place finisher has yet to run back

* 3rd place finisher beaten 9.5 lengths came back to win a Group 2 at 7/2 odds next time out.

* 4th place finisher beaten 11 lengths came back to win a Group 2 by 2.5 lengths at 14/1 next out.

* 5th place finisher beaten 12 lengths came back to run 2nd in a Group 2 at 16/1 odds next time out.

* 6th place finisher beaten 15.5 lengths came to America and was 4th beaten 3 lengths as a longshot in yesterday's Grade 1 Eddie Read at Del Mar.

* 7th place hasn't yet run back

* 8th place hasn't yet run back

* 9th place beaten 22+ lengths was beaten just 1.25 lengths in a Group 1 next time out

* 10th and 11th place both haven't run back yet.

[PatCummings]

I think it was a great performance...

I also think Confront set off at a fairly quick gallop and the Derby winners weren't that far off his his hot fractions, giving Harbinger a better chance to run them down. What might me more surprising is that the other decent horses, Daryakana and Youmzain could get no closer. Here, to me, beating them by the margin he did was just as impressive as the others.

[randallscott35]

Incredible is right.

[smuthg]

DrugS that's for posting... I heard the race call on "Down the Stretch" yesterday, and the call gives some indication of how impressive the victory was, but that video is unreal.

I still think that Zarkarva was better that Sea the Stars, but I don't recall either of them ever doing anything like that.

[slotdirt]

I love the call: "He's going to win by a street."

[Danzig]

thanks for posting the link. very nice effort by the winner. and carrying 133. when's the last time one of our good horses carried 130 or more?

[The Indomitable DrugS]

Originally Posted by slotdirt

I love the call: "He's going to win by a street."

The call of the big Group 2 win cracked me up ... the race caller goes "and on a good week for punters - the bookmakers are staring at their doom"

[hockey2315]

Originally Posted by brockguy

some performance alright - my guess is he'll get a RPR of 136 or so which puts him in Sea The Stars territory.

142

[smuthg]

WOW... that 142 puts him is some pretty serious company.

The following are Timeform's Greatest Racehorses:

Highest Timeform Annual Ratings (Flat)
145 Sea Bird II
144 Brigadier Gerard, Tudor Minstrel
142 Abernant, Ribot, Windy City
141 Mill Reef
140 Dancing Brave, Dubai Millennium, Shergar, Vaguely Noble, Sea The Stars

[hockey2315]

Ooops - ya - mine was Timeform - so not a direct response to brock