*Race 4: There were more people in the paddock for this 3-and-up maiden special than there are for most Grade 1 stakes at Belmont. Everyone wanted to see what a $16 million maiden looks like. The answer: Like any other horse. A Hall of Fame trainer watching the post parade remarked that he didn\'t see a single thing that would make you pick him out of a field full of racehorses as anything special. Still, he opened at 2-5 and that\'s what he was when the gates opened. He broke cleanly and took up a perfect spot in third on the outside as Sixthirteen was pressed hard by Bujagali in 22.18 and 44.90, blazing fractions compared to the earlier races and considering the wind. It should have been a perfect set-up if The Green Money were worth even three cents on the dollar, but he struggled to hold third while falling farther and farther back as Roi Maudit swept to the lead and Sixthirteen held second. The Green Monkey was beaten seven lengths, earning a Beyer of 76. \"He\'s going to be a maiden a very long time,\" said the Hall of Famer. \"Actually, I doubt we\'ll see him race again.\"
http://cristblog.drf.com/crist/
No, that Hall of Famer wasn\'t me. Who do you think he was?
Chuckshado:
Also read that blog. My first two guesses would be 1) TAP\'s mentor or 2)the
man who saddled the winner of the race. Number 1) probably trained more high
priced auction busts than anyone in his day, so you might consider him an
authority on the matter.
I think GM\'s performance is a much bigger knock on the way TP is going these days than his recent stats.
TP often works his youngsters and developing 3YOs in company. He supposedly worked GM in company with Unbridled Belle. I assume one reason he does that is to get a guage on his horses\' ability so he can spot them correctly around the country from among all the options. He\'s so good at that year after year, the assumption has to be that he is very skilled at evaluating his own horses.
To me, there was absolutely no financial upside to allowing this horse to run and embarass himself. I can\'t help but think TP was expecting a much better effort than he got, otherwise he wouldn\'t have run. The fact that he was this wrong says something.