Racing abandoned at Newcastle... Hope its going to be ok for the weekend... Some of my mates are going tom...!!!
Good little battle in the Irish Derby on Sat Night. Camelot is a short price fav but the field has a good quality feel about it. Imperial Monarch gets his chance over a mile and a half after a terribly unlucky win in the French Derby, and I very much think he was a certainty to make it a AOB 1-2 with Camelot, and not necessarily in the order the market suggests. Born To Sea follows his muk and ignores his sire by stepping up to a mile and a half and I think he will be interesting to watch, especially the way he is improving. Akeed Mofeed was viewed as a very smart middle distance prospect for John Oxx and ran a hugely promising 2nd in last years Beresford stakes. The feeling is that the tiredness will get the better of him late on after his setbacks. Astrology just is not that good and I rate IMPERIAL MONARCH as clear value against the excellent, though to a small extent still unproven, Camelot.
It makes you wonder why AOB is running his own horses against Camelot, surely it cannot be in the interests of Coolmoore for Camelot to lose to any of them.* It makes you wonder if Astrology and Imperial Monarch are just in there to give the race some credibility, as there's only 7 runners. It would be pretty embarrassing for Irish racing if they had a 5 runner Derby *
And they have the last race going of at 9.50...!!! Dos it not get dark up there in Jockland by then...!!!
In the next at Yarmouth i'd be surprised if La Pampita isn't better than the rest of these horses and at 2/1 looks like a good price based on form. At a big 33/1 I think Roman Eglenovich could sneak a place on debut for a trainer who likes this course and uses the jockey sparingly but has a lot of success when they team up.
Northern Bolt or Fol Hollow in the 8.50 at Hamilton? I'd have said Fol Hollow, but it's on the drift and Northern Bolt's being backed. What think ye fellows?
The prize money for 2nd and 3rd is pretty substantial that's why if one can fill those spots then it's worth running them all. Plus i can't believe people won't travel with their horses when such good money is available for placing, makes no sense to me. Very dissapointing Derby turnout.
Two bets tonight Nick Watney @ 5/2 in a 3ball against Tiger and KJ Choi Germany -1 H'Cap, 12/5 Goodluck one and all!!
The problem with the Irish Derby is that there is a significant time from the Epsom Derby and so the same horse can contest it unlike the French where you run in one or the other. This means the pecking order is already established and when there is an easy winner like this year those already beaten will be reluctant to reoppose. In an ideal world i would have the 3 Derbys within 3 weeks of each other in June and the three winners race against each other in the King George against their older rivals. This would really provide a spectacle to savour. On a side note i am constantly amazed how many Group 1's have a poor turn out considering the place money available. Some with vision do benefit however and Side Glance now has place money and Group 1 place black type due to his run in the Queen Mary which is pretty amazing. I bet he got more for that than winning two listed races.
