Has to be. He jumps so well (although not perfect last week) but I feel he doesn't get 3m+ in open company.
Has to be. He jumps so well (although not perfect last week) but I feel he doesn't get 3m+ in open company.
Some people say he’s the best since Arkle and that’s certainly true when you look at what he’s done
Two highlights for me were the Munir/Suede/ Jacobs successes and Nico De Boinville's success with team Henderson.
The former has rejuvenated Daryl jacob's career and nice to see such a nice spread of nice horses with a number of trainers both sides of the pond.
The latter is your old style stable jockey doing his job with no fuss , just aplomb, riding at the second meeting Day 3 of The Festival sandwiching Champion Chase success and Gold Cup second with a double at the minor meeting.
The success of Presenting Percy through the season flying the "small trainer's "flag was a joy to witness; hopefully Gold Cup dreams may be fulfilled.
The lowpoint was witnessing Nichols Canyon's fall at Christmas; I felt sick in the stand when seeing his broken leg.
Not normally sentimental over animals I was surprised the extent to which it effected me.
The extent to which WPM and GE dominated the Irish scene sweeping 11million Euro of available prizemoney between them cannot be healthy.
Take the handicap hurdle last Saturday; WPM had 14 declared and one reserve: one non runner allowed Benkei , second reserve run.
But for that WPM would have had the first four finishers.
A racing friend remembers a day in the 1960s when some American owner had six runners in a Curragh maiden and the novelty of it; this can now be seen in any valuable handicap hurdle or chase from Cork to Down Royal. That the successful owner is not present for trophy presentation does not help racecourse committee to satisfy sponsors , hence the fuss made over pdleech at Listowel last September.
The Irish p2p scene has totally changed in the last ten years; now a quartet of trainers and Gigginstown with power of numbers and arrangement with Sales companies have consigned the local enthusiast to older maiden and confined races.
A knock on effect of this is the difficulty of many p2p clubs getting local volunteers to steward at meetings; paying a local GAA club to do the work for them.
Locals volunteer in the hope of a local winner to make the day worthwhile; take away the local content and you may as well watch ATR at home.
an capall (2nd May 2018), Grasshopper (1st May 2018), Grey (1st May 2018), Maruco (1st May 2018), moehat (2nd May 2018), tiggers1972 (1st May 2018)
A good post Eddie. I hadn't seen this before I posted on the Punchestown thread, but I agree with every word of that.
I thought Michael O'Leary's interview with Gary O'Brien on Saturday was very revealing. Gary was trying to congratulate him on being champion owner but the charming O'Leary brushed it off by saying it was of no consequence and that what really mattered was to see Gordon Elliott become champion trainer. He said they would have to buy more horses (!) and ensure they retain more older horses in the future. He even had the gall to suggest that HdB, Noel Meade, Jessie and others would need to up their game. Other trainers can forget about getting horses from him in future, it seems.
Missed that Art.
Beating Willie will keep Michael o leary awake at night.
Some people say he’s the best since Arkle and that’s certainly true when you look at what he’s done
Overacheiver of the season : Supasundae
Underacheiver :Yorkhill
Why does it always go wrong for me award :Paul Townend
Best innovation : Dublin Racing Festival
Race of the year : Gold Cup
littlelad (1st May 2018)
Last edited by Grasshopper; 2nd May 2018 at 9:34 AM.
"Beat the price and lose. It's what we do".
SlimChance, March 2018
Fair enough, but still don't think it makes him anything like the 'best placed horse in a decade'.
"Beat the price and lose. It's what we do".
SlimChance, March 2018
Timefigure review: Punchestown Festival and Season Recap
Timeform's Research and Development team provide the latest timefigure updates following the Punchestown Festival, while also looking back at the 2017/18 jumps season as a whole.
Few Festival meetings can ever have delivered the sort of spontaneous and spectacular drama that Punchestown displayed last week against the backdrop of a titanic duel for the Irish trainers’ title between Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliot, which ensured a relentless blitz of top quality action. A few results had a slightly end-of-season feel to them, and a few more would been different had things unfolded otherwise, but there were some top-notch performances good enough to break into the leading timefigure categories for the 2017-18 jumps season, as we explain below.
2m hurdlers
For the second season running the Champion Hurdle went to Buveur d’Air, but whereas his 2017 victory was also equalled by the fastest timefigure (167) over hurdles, his 2018 win (161) didn’t match the 169 recorded earlier in the season by Faugheen in the Morgiana Hurdle, nor later by Supasundae (163) in the Punchestown Champion Hurdle.
Samcro’s appearance in the latter made it the most anticipated race at Punchestown all week, but with him and Champion Hurdle runner-up Melon both falling three out, it was left to the Stayers’ Hurdle runner-up to beat the 2017 winner Wicklow Brave (159) in a race run at a ruthless gallop. Melon (161 at Cheltenham) would surely have been thereabouts had he stayed on his feet, though Samcro might well have come out best of all given his superior stamina.
So far as the novices are concerned, Supreme Novices’ Hurdle first and second Summerville Boy and Kalashnikov posted the best figures with 155 apiece; Summerville Boy, however, would have run out a four-length winner or so had he not made a mess of the last two flights.
Intermediate hurdlers
There are few races of significance at around 2½m for older horses, so it’s no surprise the best performance in this category was recorded by the aforementioned Samcro (159) in the Ballymore, where he had Black Op (156) comfortably behind in second. Black Op had earlier finished just behind Aintree winner Santini (153) in the Classic Novices' Hurdle at Cheltenham, though Black Op would almost certainly have won had he not fluffed the last.
Staying hurdlers
Despite his defeats at Cheltenham and Aintree, Sam Spinner’s relentless all-the-way win in the Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot (166) earns him top spot on time. It was odd that the tactics that had served him well at Ascot (and Haydock before that) were scrapped when he needed them most and hopefully Sam Spinner will be allowed another chance next season to do what he does best.
There’s nothing wrong with the form of the Long Walk – runner-up L’Ami Serge (163) won the Aintree Hurdle from Supasundae – but Penhill, Identity Thief, Faugheen and Call Me Lord all emerged late in the season as possible contenders for the crown next year even though none of them as yet has come close to matching Sam Spinner’s timefigure over 3m or more.
Sefton Novices’ winner Santini and Punchestown Grade 1 winner Next Destination (150) are entitled to be regarded as the best of the staying novices for all their best timefigures have come at slightly shorter.
2m chasers
The 2m chasing division houses the two superpowers from a timefigure point of view, with dual Champion chaser Altior (180 at Cheltenham) just having the edge over outstanding novice and Arkle winner Footpad (179). Altior has looked increasingly as if a step up in trip will suit him, so whether the pair will meet next season remains to be seen.
Former Arkle winner Douvan might have taken a hand in the Champion Chase had he stood up and his subsequent 162 effort behind Un de Sceaux (165) in the Champion Chase at Punchestown shows he is no back number. Un de Sceaux has a long catalogue of high-class performances on the clock to his name and had Min behind at Punchestown, though Min wasn’t at his best as three timefigure performances of 167 or more before then testify.
Saint Calvados (165) didn’t give his running in the Arkle, but his defeat of Aintree winner Diego du Charmil in the Kingmaker at Warwick suggests he should win his fair share of top 2m races next season, while dual Grade 1 winner Politilogue weighed in with a best timefigure of 163.
Middle-distance chasers
Sizing John had the honour of posting the best timefigure (168) in the latest season at around 2½m. The 2017 Gold Cup winner looked better than ever when making a winning reappearance at Punchestown before Christmas, but sadly found his season curtailed after just one more run.
Min also managed a 167 timefigure at the trip just ahead of Ryanair winner Balko des Flos (165), while best of the non-Irish trained horses was Waiting Patiently (166) on account of his defeat of the now-retired Cue Card (163) in the Ascot Chase in February.
Staying Chasers
Pride of place among the staying chasers goes not to Gold Cup winner Native River nor King George winner Might Bite, but to Bristol de Mai who recorded a 174 timefigure in the Betfair Chase. Bristol de Mai subsequently finished behind Might Bite in both the King George and the Betway Bowl and would seem to be his inferior, but he’s still only seven and given deep ground and soft fences – conditions he would get in Ireland in a normal winter - he would be a match for any chaser.
Native River (168) beat Might Bite (164) on merit in the Gold Cup and, like the King George winner, is reportedly set to be seen more often next season; aside from Sizing john the Irish lack a really top-notch 3m chaser, though Bellshill’s win last week (163) in the Punchestown Gold Cup entitles him to be considered best of the rest.
Colin Phillips (2nd May 2018), Danny (2nd May 2018), edgt (2nd May 2018)
Bellshill my surprise horse of the year
Willie for one reason or another can never get a grasp of these high quality 3 milers
This one should have been his GC horse.
Some people say he’s the best since Arkle and that’s certainly true when you look at what he’s done
I might be wrong about this, and Archie can almost certainly put me right, but doesn't Willie predominantly train them on the flat rather than endlessly send them up hills? If so his horses may not generally be as stamina laden as the typical Gold Cup winner, and his training methods essentially mean they are more likely to have a turn of foot, rather than be a grinder?
Last edited by Maruco; 2nd May 2018 at 4:30 PM.
Willie has a 3 furlong wood chip saucer gallop on which he trains em. If they had fences at Chester he would be unbeatable.
"And still they gazed and still the wonder grew. That one small head could carry all he knew.
And that small head knew that Impaire Et Passe would win the Champion Hurdle."
This gives you a good idea of the layout.
Racecourse gallops at the likes of Thurles gives them some work up (and down) hills but, by and large, I don't think he tends to buy horses that are big, backward chasing types. Most owners want quick results and these big fellas often never get to the track.
The older I get the better I was.
Grey (2nd May 2018)
The Gigginstown boyos buy Gold Cup horses whereas most others rarely do.
Signs of it the numbers they have in every top staying handicap chase yet have just two Gold Cups to show for it, same as Noel Chance with a fraction of the horses.
WPM has had six GC runners up, Total Recall looking place bound until falling this year.
Looking at the profile of most recent Gold Cup winners, you have to leave a lot of not so smaller pots behind you to bag the big one.
Has Willie , or his owners, the mentality to leave trainers championships and all the rest behind to risk all on one big day ?
Shades of Kipling, but Willie's one day cannot be too far away.