** Official Cricketweb Horseracing thread **

[Smudge]

Meanwhile, in the harness racing world, the magical mark of 1.50 for the mile was SMASHED last night, by Smoken Up. First time ever it has been broken in Australasia and what's more, he paced the mile in 1.48.5.

 

[_Ed_]

That's incredible.

 

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Wow, I loved the performance of Blue Bunting to win the 1000 Guineas. That was a huge, sustained sprint down the outside.

And a great ride by Dettori - beautifully timed. I guess you could say the 2011 Guineas weekend was all about Frankel and Frankie.

 

[Smudge]

Just checked out So You Think's first-up run in the Group 3 at Curragh last night. An effortless 10-length win isn't bad...

 

[_Ed_]

Yeah, awesome performance. Can't wait to see him go up against Workforce.

Saw this today:

Indeed.

 

[Smudge]

I fear after the Grand Annual Steeplechase at Warrnambool today that jumps racing in Australia is finished. Was not a pretty sight. 9 started, two finished. And one riderless horse jumped a barrier fence and ploughed into a crowd...

 

[_Ed_]

Yeah, saw that incident on the news tonight. That was pretty terrifying.

The speed the horses travel at and the way they plough through those tiny fences has always made jumps racing in Australia an extremely nervous watch for me.

 

[_Ed_]

The Kentucky Derby's less than 24 hours away!

It's a really interesting field. A lot of people are warming to the Arkansas Derby quinella, Archarcharch and Nehro. But neither of them have drawn well.

Then you've got a whole bunch of horses that have shown lots of ability, but never performed on dirt - particularly Master Of Hounds, Brilliant Speed, Animal Kingdom.

I think I'll stick with Midnight Interlude and Dialed In. Their inexperience is a problem for them (they've only had four starts each), but they're amazingly talented.

 

[_Ed_]

Wow, never really gave Animal Kingdom much consideration, but that was bloody impressive.

Bred to love the distance of the Belmont as well...

 

[_Ed_]

Having watched it a few more times, Animal Kingdom has really won me over. No excuses at all among the beaten runners - he was just way too good for them.

And he might have a better shot at winning the Triple Crown than many of the recent ones who have tried and failed. Many of those only tried the 2400m Belmont Stakes because the Triple Crown was on the line, and that distance was way beyond their capabilities. Animal Kingdom's bred to stay all day, and the way he finished the Derby, you'd say 2400m will be easy for him.

The Preakness may be the biggest test - it's a shorter, sharper race, and he only has a two-week break between races, as opposed to the six weeks he had between his last start and the Derby.

 

[_Ed_]

Another great win by Black Caviar. Remember that Hay List is an exceptional racehorse in his own right, so it was amazing to see her drawing away from him like that yet again - especially since she didn't come around the corner all that well.

 

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What a great Derby. That was a sensational finishing burst by Pour Moi, and I loved Barzalona's celebration.

It was a bit before the line. ****, it was before he'd even hit the lead. But who the hell cares? He realised he was gonna win the Derby, so he celebrated. Fantastic.

I was kind of hoping the Queen could win her first Derby with Carlton House. He ran well enough, but it looked like he just ran out of steam a bit in the last 200m or so.

 

[_Ed_]

So excited about Royal Ascot.

Day one today is going to be something special.

In the very first race, the amazing Goldikova (16 wins from 22 races, 13 Group 1 wins) will try to win the Queen Anne Stakes for the second year in a row. She's going to have to beat Canford Cliffs, who has won four Group 1 races in a row.

Then there's the King's Stand Stakes, which is one of the best sprint races anywhere in the world.

And Frankel's out to extend his undefeated record to 7 in the St James's Palace Stakes.

This is going to be incredible racing. Don't miss it.

 

[_Ed_]

Canford beat Goldie.

But it was a sensational performance. He had the slightly better run, but he beat her fair and square. She had no excuses, but still ran a mighty race in her own right. Great race to watch.

 

[_Ed_]

So Frankel won again yesterday despite a hilariously dreadful ride from Queally.

Today's all about another superstar - So You Think. Can't see him losing today.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

So much hype for nothing. So You Think couldn't hack it against the Godolphin horse. Wasn't even that great a field against it either.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Today's all about another superstar - So You Think. Can't see him losing today.

Superstar??

 

[_Ed_]

Definitely. You don't win six Group 1s, including two Cox Plates, if you're anything less. And he beat the rest of the field by six lengths.

Rewilding might just be a freak this year. I thought his dominant Dubai Sheema Classic win in March was a fluke, but evidently not.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Group 1's in Australia are one thing, Europe is a different kettle of fish. As i said, didn't really rate this field and the supposed wonderhorse was beaten. It may come again and prove me wrong but i doubt it.

In other news Hoo La Baloo one of my favourite handicappers over the sticks has just won at Worcester. Always great to see the old timers get their heads in front again.

 

[_Ed_]

Group 1's in Australia are one thing, Europe is a different kettle of fish.

Strongly disagree with that.

Choisir, Starcraft, Takeover Target, Miss Andretti, Scenic Blast and Starspangledbanner all held their form. Even Star Witness, who's not one of the very best horses in Australia, measured up pretty well yesterday.