Another G1 gifted on a plate, what a farce, race was finished after 3f. Enable herself looks finished, struggling to get past Japan and Magic Wand gaining on her at the end, no chance shes winning the Arc this year, age and many hard races has caught up with her and id retire her rather than tarnish her record with a few 2nds and 3rds. Magical will beat her this season.
My comment on Ghaiyyath last year. Didn't run his race on the soft ground in the Arc but he is a monster with a high cruising speed. Not to be undersetimated
Do I detect sour grapes here? Anything from 1-1/2 miles+ you are probably 100% correct. Over shorter, like today's distance of 1-1/4 miles on good ground. I will take Ghaiyyath every time! He is a damn good racehorse, much more mature than last season.
Hes such a good horse they had to send him to Germany. Hes been gifted 2 early season races against Gold Cup preppers and an overthehill Enable. You can rest assured Ballydoyle wont allow him the lead again in any decent races, his season is over. There always Baden Baden I suppose.
Now, now, Boris/Eddie/Joe/Trotsky/SaudiCrownPrince/CroatianFootballer, Benoit, et al, you are too knowledgeable to get an attack of sour grapes too, (just kidding). IMHO, as said before, Ghaiyyath is a different horse this ****-up season, inasmuch as he is now a mature individual, with no hang-ups. Charlie Appleby is spot-on with his updated assessment of the horse. I certainly agree with you, although Gosden said Enable is only 85% (?) fit, I have a horrible feeling this great mare is over the top? I hope I am wrong, really do.
It was a good performance today but the horse was gifted that. Before the race everyone knew the tactics Ghaiyyath would employ. Its crazy that they let it get away with it today. It wasn't as farcical as The Derby yesterday but still a bit ridiculous that all the other jockeys allowed that to happen. Taken on upfront and pressure applied then who knows. Strange race.
How can you suggest Enable is over the hill on that evidence. I think you just can't accept that Ghaiyyath is a decent horse. That was a very fast time, it was an 85% fit Enable warming up for the KG en route to her main objective, the Arc. Frankie took it easy and was never going to give her a hard race. This race was always going to be too much of an ask against a match-fit Ghaiyyath over 10f. We won't know if she is over the hill until she runs in the Arc, assuming she does run
Shes 6yo Ron, danced every dance the last 3 seasons, multiple gruelling races on bottomless ground, that didnt look like the Enable of old to me today, could be wrong but I think shes had enough.
You might be right Joe. I won't lie, I did actually say to my wife immediately after the race " It now remains to be seen whether Gosden sticks to the plan of a 3rd Arc win attempt or whether he will rely on Logician". But it still will have been a good performance, in that time, on that ground over inadequate distance. We can but hope. I'm sure Gosden will retire her if he thinks she's not up to it.
Before the race, I thought certain that Magic Wand was in there as the spoiler. She is not good enough to win the Eclipse but she has been up at the front end of a couple of top races in the past, so I thought that she would be the one taking Ghaiyyath on to see whether he would let her have the lead or whether it would light him up. As it was, he was allowed to dictate and Buick rode a good race, picked up around the bend and made the most of his horse’s ability to win fair and square. I think that Enable will follow the same route as last year: King George, Yorkshire Oaks and then Longchamp. I can see Love going to the Irish Oaks, the Irish Champion and then Longchamp; whilst Ghaiyyath may go to the Juddmonte, the Irish Champion and then Longchamp. I still would not want Ghaiyyath for the Arc because he flopped on the very soft ground last year and there is no guarantee that it will not be just as soft this October.
