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** Official Cricketweb Horseracing thread **

Molehill

Cricketer Of The Year

What an extraordinary career.
Worth looking up Shergar’s Derby on YouTube but with the Peter Bromley radio commentary, the last 2 furlongs are spine tingling.

It had followed the infamous line by a columnist “now is the time to bet like men” after his Trial victory. Boy did he deliver…
 

The_CricketUmpire

U19 Captain
Race 5: Lexus Stakes (Hotham Handicap) now to be run on Makybe Diva Stakes Day instead of being run on Victoria Derby day

Winner still gets automatic entry into Melbourne Cup.


 

Molehill

Cricketer Of The Year
Vauban looks the strongest of the European entry. If he's only 1/2 a kilo more than last year then I think he's got a great chance. Looks a more solid proposition now and running 2nd to Kyprios (who would surely be allotted top weight were he entered) is a decent effort.

If O' Brien sends Jan Brueghel, then he'd be very interesting as I suspect he's still got loads of improvement in him and is likely to become a Cup horse next year. But everyone says he's quite babyish still, so surely unlikely to be sent down under at this stage of his career. Illinois is tough but looks more exposed.

If Magical Zoe runs, she could well interesting too, won the Ebor with plenty in hand and looks like a mare who has more improvement in her on the flat (started off life as a jumper). Would be a great story for the trainer too who lost his teenage son in a riding accident 2 years ago.
 

The_CricketUmpire

U19 Captain
The 2024 Melbourne Cup will be the first since 2008 (and the fourth since 1979) guaranteed to have a completely new set of placegetters. No previous placegetter remains in the entries.

It will be the first since 2002 guaranteed to have a completely new top four.
 

The_CricketUmpire

U19 Captain
Just Fine wins The Bart Cummings and earns a free ticket into the Melbourne Cup.

Bart Cummings/Melbourne Cup Double

2016: Almandin
2000: Brew
1970: Baghdad Note
 

The_CricketUmpire

U19 Captain
One time Melbourne Cup hope Savennah's Knight ran super at good odds....ran 5th in the Arc. Was meant to come to Melbourne for the Cup, they chose the Arc instead.
 

Molehill

Cricketer Of The Year
Strange and lacklustre Arc in that the best horses swerved it or missed it for various reasons. May help push the idea of allowing geldings to run in the future.
Yeah, really average Arc this year. They definitely need to change the rule on geldings, even if it runs the risk of reducing stud values for those who might get beaten by them. But Calandagan and Goliath would've improved that field immensely. As it was, in a field of non-stayers and those not good enough, it was set up perfectly for the winner who had a completely trouble free passage and it never looked in doubt. She's a decent mare, but she shouldn't be winning an Arc.
 

The_CricketUmpire

U19 Captain
Deny Knowledge - Carried 57kg in the Might And Power Stakes, now drops to 50.5kg in the Caulfield Cup next week. Was $61 for the Caulfield Cup on Sportsbet...now into $23.
 

The_CricketUmpire

U19 Captain
This from Nick Ashman on X (formerly Twitter):

"DENY KNOWLEDGE clocked 2.01:4 winning Caulfield Stk yesterday

These are the only horses to break 2.02:00 since year 2000

Lonhro
Maldivian
Whobegotyou
Fawkner
Benbatl
Probabeel
Alligator Blood

All of them went onto the Cox Plate bar Maldivian who was sensationally scratched at the barrier ahead of the Caulfield Cup

DENY KNOWLEDGE is going to a handicap and dropping 6kg

She should be favourite IMHO not $21. Side note here’s what we sent out to subs via @TheBeatenFav last week"



Bear in mind it isn't a 6kg drop.....its 6.5kg...
 

The_CricketUmpire

U19 Captain
I'm an Aussie I love Australian racing but I also appreciate and watch racing outside Australia too.

It's fair to say that Australian racing is the best in the world when it comes to speed.......sprinting.....the racing model/landscape is designed for it@ the rating tell us it too. But from 1600m+ Australian racing for the past 10 to 12 years hasn't been strong in terms of depth. Look at this Saturdays Caulfield Cup...not a strong edition.

The prize money is great but the quality depthwise isn't there. It's sad because racing in Australia at 1600m+ was a lot stronger in terms of depth in the 1990s through to early/mid 2000s. Plus we get a lot of B and C Grade horses from Europe who aren't good enough in Europe (the best 1600m+ racing in the world) come to Australia either as internationally trained or as imports and they more often than not win Grouo 1s in Australia.

Then there's the other issue if too many Group 1 races in Australia - It's a farce...seriously it's a joke. Australian racing needs a total reset.
 

Molehill

Cricketer Of The Year
Kevin Blake is an Irish TV Presenter but also a breeder. The big issue from that aspect is the amount of 'black type' available in Australia for mares in particular which can push up prices for their progeny. It doesn't make it a level playing field. It can't be long before the Europeans work out if they can plunder some Aussie prizemoney and group status, they're already very much doing it in the US. That also highlights the lack of prizemoney in the UK in particular.
 

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