What did she run this time, a 2 or a 3? She will not hit the board in the Breeder\'s Cup if she can barely beat these...
Leamas
Probably and then we have horses Rachel is beating getting like Negative 3\'s.
I know, Silver. 1:45 is slow anywhere for 1 1/16th. The bias was probably slow and it often gets worse toward evening, but a good thing for her because she needed the heavy track it seems. They probably asked Moss how fast he wanted it considering it was like Derby Day out there today. My buddy had to wait 15 minutes to make a bet--in the 4th race!
Leamas
Name the 3 horses that are gonna beat her at 10f?
I will be glad to tell you when I see who is entered and how their form looks going into the race. She would not have caught Blame today even if the race had been 10 panels, I can tell you that.
Leamas57 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> What did she run this time, a 2 or a 3? She will
> not hit the board in the Breeder\'s Cup if she can
> barely beat these...
>
> Leamas
She didn\'t barely beat those horses. She cruised to the lead, maintained the lead, and when the other horse came up to her it was obvious she wasn\'t going by.
You want to talk about her \"number\" on a synthetic surface?? Hasn\'t this been discussed before?? Don\'t be ridiculous.
Her margins are deceiving. We\'ve heard this after every race, she barely won. She wins. If Smith wanted to win by more, he wouldn\'t have coasted home. Whats the point?? This race was at 1 1/16, and she doesn\'t seem too fond of that very quirky surface. You want to make assumptions on the BCC based on a 1 1/16 race over a weird DM surface??
Nice to see the haters and cynics are still around. As Smalltimer asked, name the 3 horses that keep her off the board? I\'ll give you Blame, thats a very nice horse. QR at 1 1/4?? Soft fractions and that horse still couldn\'t get home. The pace in The BCC will be stiffer than that. I respect QR a lot, but he has still yet to win at the Classic distance.
You may not like her campaign, and you have a right not too. But she doesn\'t make the schedule, she just shows up when asked. She has beaten every horse she has faced.
So other than Blame, name the other 2 horses that will beat her at 1 1/4??
Leamas57 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I will be glad to tell you when I see who is
> entered and how their form looks going into the
> race. She would not have caught Blame today even
> if the race had been 10 panels, I can tell you
> that.
So you don\'t have any idea which horses will keep her off the board. I doubt that there will be any FTS in the Classic. Look around the racing landscape and tell us who beats her. That is a really lame response.
There\'s always somebody out there for you guys. First its Rachel, then its Quality Road, now it\'s Blame. At this point, you can\'t name 3 horses that would beat her at 10 furlongs. It should make for a great wagering opportunity if you can find 3 horses to beat her in the Classic.
As far as Rachel and QR, if they\'re both in the Classic, they\'ll be in a death-match for 9 furlongs before Zenyatta even comes along in the stretch. That race won\'t even get interesting until the final 1/8th of a mile.
Oh, gosh - the only good thing about Zenyatta eventually retiring is all these moronic comments will someday cease. The race she ran today was so incredibly hidden for how great it actually was (put a BTL! on the line Jerry!) -- first of all the horse she beat lost by a head to a champion last out - I suppose that counts for nothing??? Z is like eight wide running down the slowest paced mile and a 1/16 race in the country, giving weight, and she still cruises by with her ears pricked waiting for something to do. Her race today was as amazing as any she\'s ever run regardless of the number, hidden as usual on Polycrap. There aren\'t too many horses in the world who could have won like she did today - yet the stupidity on this board just keeps resonating. I\'ve only said this 1000X - you folks have no idea what you\'re are seeing, but you\'ll never see it again in history. Jerry Cooney??? More like Rocky Marciano! Peace out.
Dana,
We\'re wasting our time with the clueless. They\'re the ones missing out.
Dana/P-Dub,
I think two points are different here. I don\'t think 3 horses beat her at 1 1/4. She is too consistent at \"running her race\", no matter the pace, distance or setup. This makes her Zenyatta IMO.
But I respectfully disagree with your assessment of yesterday\'s race. Despite my pre-race protest to not even watch the race, I was home, so I put it on. If you watched it on TVG I don\'t blame you for thinking she had so much left, could have won by more, etc.etc. Todd Schrupp and company are not good (I am being kind with that). Smith got as hard into Zenyatta as I have seen him. She was not pulling away at all the last 1/16th of a mile. Rinterval ran a nice race, but she is a pretty common horse. She at least one level behind a St. Trinian\'s. This looked to me to be one of Zenyatta\'s worst races.
If we on this board are going to kill RAchel for only beating Queen Martha by 4 lengths, a head win over Rinterval can\'t be glorified as a huge win either.
To me, both races are emblematic of the same bigger point. When you race nobody in non-competitive races, it is hard to quantify the performances. THis is why both mares should be well beyond racing the Rintervals and Queen Marthas of the game. It achieves nothing.
Jimbo,
I kind of agree with much of your post. I watched Z\'s race also, and I thought she was fairly flat and could afford to be yesterday because of the lack of real competition. Heading into the race, I was mildly concerned because that DelMar surface has been real funky (again) and the 8.5f is not Z\'s cup of tea, plus, I was afraid the 129#\'s from last race and Z really having to haul ass in the stretch to catch St. T was a recipe for a real flat effort. Yet, if she would have needed to be 2 lengths faster, it was probably there if Mike called on it.
I still am not able to get past the fact Z is a fully mature 6 year old and getting older every month. At some point, her age will take a step or two from her.
I, for one was not bashing Rachel on her latest win. I\'ve said all year that she just isn\'t \"right\", and I think she shows that everytime she runs. But, she is still a very elite racehorse. I think the short list of horses that can beat her or make her run her eyeballs out, especially at 9f is QR, Blame, Life At Ten, St. T (if she had kept campaigning), Rail Trip and Zenyatta. That\'s a pretty salty bunch, and she fits with any of them up to 9f. I just think Rachel and QR in the same race would be devastating for either of them if they had to go another furlong with a couple of closers like Blame and Zenyatta really gearing up.
I\'m gonna agree with richie in that now I doubt Z will try the Beldame, it doesn\'t fit her best style, and I\'m sure Shireffs has said \"screw it\", I\'m gonna get her to the Classic and she prove herself AGAIN to those that continue to doubt her.
I almost can\'t wait for Z\'s career to end at Churchill. There are a couple things that Mike told me about Z as far back as 3 years ago that are really playing out. Mentally, she is a remarkable animal.
Jimbo, what was your take on QR yesterday? I know you\'re really high on him and stated that neither Rachel or Zenyatta could compete with him. You still think that at 10f? Despite QR\'s big negative numbers on TG, I think he\'s much ado about nothing when you\'re talking a 10f race with some real competition.
I still find it odd that Lookin at Lucky, Concorde Point, Champagne D\'Or with the synthetic backgrounds can ship East and kick ass even when their figures look weak. I live in Nebraska so no East/West bias here.
Have a good one
jimbo66 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> To me, both races are emblematic of the same
> bigger point. When you race nobody in
> non-competitive races, it is hard to quantify the
> performances. THis is why both mares should be
> well beyond racing the Rintervals and Queen
> Marthas of the game. It achieves nothing.
I would disagree Jim. Zen has raced 18 times. She will have raced 20/21 times by the time it\'s over. Secretariat had 21 races. Zen is a 6 yr old mare prepping to defend her BC Classic title. Good enough for me.
I support Zen\'s career 100%. She is much, much larger than the average mare, and there is no evidence her bones are any stronger than those of a 16 hand horse. To get this unbelievable beauty to her 2nd BC Classic at age six after 20 races will have been a brilliant accomplishment by team Moss.
Could horse racing use a few Zen/RA races? Of course. But I\'m not willing to put the weight of the sport on the back of a 6 yr old mare.
Smalltimer,
I was extremely disappointed with Quality Road\'s race (I had no bet on or against him, but I am disappointed as somebody who thought QR was in the Ghostzapper class).
I don\'t know what to make of it. I don\'t want to over-react, but the easiest conclusion to come to is that QR is not a true distance horse. Gulfstream is often a glib surface where horses that are a bit distance challenged can get the longer distances. Saratoga at 1 1/8 or a 1 /4 miles is always a true distance/stamina test.
But with the slow pace that QR got, he was really supposed to \"open up\" on the far turn and spurt away. He never looked like a winner from the top of the stretch to home. Johnny V said he wasn\'t in the bridle and he drifted him wide on purpose turning for home because he knew he didn\'t have the usual \"monster\" underneath him.
I think Blame is a nice horse, but not a monster, so the loss is pretty bad IMO. I will be curious to see where QR shows up next. If he races his normal big race next time out, he is still the horse to beat in the Classic, but he is a question mark for now.
Agree with you completely on QR and Rachel being in the same race setting it up for Zenyatta.
I will go one step further. If Life at Ten, Rachel and Zenyatta run in the Beldame, you could see the same effect with Life at Ten and Rachel hooking up around the half mile mark.
But it would still be a helluva race to see.
Michael D,
We will just have to agree to disagree. Based on the campaign Zenyatta has had so far, I would have strongly preferred she stay retired. She hasn\'t \"raced\" this year, she has gone on an extended retirement tour, competing against slow horses. IT does nothing for me and I doubt I stand alone with that view.
Jim
Jimbo,
The shocking thing to me was the soft fractions QR set and then not opening up at the head of the stretch. I felt going in that even spotting the weight QR would handle Blame by 4-5 lengths. I don\'t do the TG numbers on my own, but its probable Blame ran his typical race and QR obviously wasn\'t on top of his game.
Maybe his old foot problem flared up during the race, or he may have put more into an earlier race than we thought.
But, trust me jimbo, QR is a horse who senses a confident rival. I still remember when he stuck his tail between his legs when he caught a look at Zenyatta last year prior to the Classic, that\'s when he started to mail it in mentally that day. Zenyatta, the times I\'ve seen her, will stare them down, stop right in front of them, intimidate them, etc, she is a bully with a huge ego. She also has a trememdous will to win and it will take a poor trip or a great racehorse to beat her when the $ 5M is on the line at Churchill. But, she\'s 6...
No one can argue that QR is about unbeatable at a mile or 8.5 furlongs, at 9f with the right type of pace attendance, I think he\'s very beatable as long as there is a legitimate closer who will continue to run the last 1/8th or so.
And I do agree with you that Blame is a real nice horse, but not a monster. I think there are 2 or 3 horses from the West coast that will handle him at 9f or 10 furlongs. Could be wrong...
One thing I\'ve learned about the really GOOD California horses, they seem to have a lot of gas in the tank come stretch time, I know those surfaces really build the stamina foundation and they\'re constantly working on \"different\" types of strips during the racing year so they keep having different type \"training\" methods thrust upon them. When the great ones adapt to that, they can really scoot in the late stages of races. Its like they are continually training their muscles to react to different type stresses depending on what type of synthetic they\'re training on. The old saying, \"muscles are stupid, they do what you train them to do\" always applies with the real talented synthetic runners. I spose its almost like they are cross-training all year long and then they go to a natural surface of turf or real dirt and adapt immediately. Its possible the smaller, intrinsic muscles in the rear, the upper legs and chest area are just really developed because the surface\'s seem to work these horses a little different than the conventional dirt does.
I was disappointed QR lost yesterday because I really wanted Z to have a chance to eyeball him again in the paddock before the Classic, when she may have been the underdog.
One other point and then I\'ll leave this alone. With Rachel, I really don\'t think her connections want to try the Classic at 10f. The problem is then Life at Ten and Devil May Care in the Distaff, that\'s no cup of tea either, right?
If QR makes the Classic, if there\'s not enough quality early speed in there to really make him work, he becomes a \"threat\" to win it. If 3-4 top notch speed horses that can carry their speed for 8.5 or 9 furlongs show up, he\'ll have his work cut out. Again, I could be wrong.
Have a good one
What are you guys smoking?
Ghostzapper?
Cross training?
Eyeballing the competition?
Small intrinsic muscles?
Sounds like World Wrestling Federation.
jimbo66 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Dana/P-Dub,
>
> I think two points are different here. I don\'t
> think 3 horses beat her at 1 1/4. She is too
> consistent at \"running her race\", no matter the
> pace, distance or setup. This makes her Zenyatta
> IMO.
>
> But I respectfully disagree with your assessment
> of yesterday\'s race. Despite my pre-race protest
> to not even watch the race, I was home, so I put
> it on. If you watched it on TVG I don\'t blame you
> for thinking she had so much left, could have won
> by more, etc.etc. Todd Schrupp and company are not
> good (I am being kind with that).
Jimbo, the last people I listen to when making an opinion are those guys. Cmon, you couldn\'t insult me more if you tried.(I know you weren\'t insulting me) When that clown Schrupp is on the set, talking as the horses are walking up to the gate, he talks AD NAUSEUM right up until the gate opens. Its sickening. If anyone has yesterday\'s TVG telecast still on tape check it out. He is speaking as the gates open and then the bell is like a mute button, he stops talking. He does this for EVERY big race. I can\'t stand him. I have already deleted the TVG show and just kept the DM replay show.
> Smith got as hard into Zenyatta as I have seen him. She was
> not pulling away at all the last 1/16th of a mile.
> Rinterval ran a nice race, but she is a pretty
> common horse. She at least one level behind a St.
> Trinian\'s. This looked to me to be one of
> Zenyatta\'s worst races.
Watching again, Smith did get into her. Maybe the last race took a little out of her. But she did cruise to the lead, plenty wide packing weight into a slow pace. Smith also says she stops running after she makes the lead. She was several paths away from the other horse. I don\'t know. But that horse wasn\'t getting by.
> If we on this board are going to kill RAchel for
> only beating Queen Martha by 4 lengths, a head win
> over Rinterval can\'t be glorified as a huge win
> either.
I didn\'t kill her over it, and what does that say about RA when she is getting criticized for winning by 4??
> To me, both races are emblematic of the same
> bigger point. When you race nobody in
> non-competitive races, it is hard to quantify the
> performances.
Agree with this.
> This is why both mares should be
> well beyond racing the Rintervals and Queen
> Marthas of the game. It achieves nothing.
They can\'t shove horses into a trailer and make them race. These are GR1 races for a lot of money. If other horses don\'t show up, hard to blame them.
I think it was Richie or Michael, or perhaps both, that made sound points as to why Zenyatta will stay in California and then ship to CD. After re-thinking it makes sense. Ship to NY in October, ship back, then ship again in about a 30 day period. That is a tough thing to do. They Classic is the race, and we will be treated to one of the best Classics ever. This is taking into account the quality of competition and the historical relevance.
Richie was correct, 13 GR 1 wins and 3 BC wins would put her into the stratosphere of all time greats. I think she is already up there, but a win in November will cement her status.
Why is it so lame to wait until I see who is entered what kind of form they display. Jerry could certainly find enough runners than can run negative one or faster--which is probably all it will take?
QR with his normal form is one, probably Blame and LAL as well, but the point is that if some of these left their BC race in a summer outing, I am not going to point to them. I will definitely be betting Z to come in no better than third and then also off the board. Can\'t wait, frankly.
Leamas.
Leamas57 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Why is it so lame to wait until I see who is
> entered what kind of form they display. Jerry
> could certainly find enough runners than can run
> negative one or faster--which is probably all it
> will take?
>
> QR with his normal form is one, probably Blame and
> LAL as well, but the point is that if some of
> these left their BC race in a summer outing, I am
> not going to point to them. I will definitely be
> betting Z to come in no better than third and then
> also off the board. Can\'t wait, frankly.
>
> Leamas.
Its lame because you have already declared she won\'t hit the board. You can\'t name 3 horses that will finish in front of her??
What if you look at the entries, look at their \"form\", and then decide....\"hmmmm, I think Zenyatta actually has a shot in here\". (Doubt it because you obviously give her no credit.)
If you need to wait until you see the entries and look at current form, then why don\'t you just wait for that time to come?? Why come here now and blow hot air about how an undefeated horse won\'t hit the board sometime in the future??
You talk about finding horses that can run a -1, how does that method work when synthetic horses, with compressed figures, suddenly move up on dirt?? You are going to compare syn numbers with dirt numbers??
Keep the comedy coming friend.
Jerry Cooney was a decent heavyweight man! Anyone that could hang with an in-his-prime Larry Holmes for 13 rounds is OK in my book! Bad analogy Leamas. I think you might have been thinking of Andrew Golota:-)
I propose we send her to R. Rodriguez for her BC finale.
Just to lock it up.
Rudy the \"test pilot\" will be out of sight out of mind by then.
Good Luck,
Joe B.
Jerry Quarry\'s????
Come on, PDUB:
The reality is that she probably won\'t even run because the record would die. If they have the guts to run her against the fastest males on dirt, I will give them credit, but my guess is that they will dodge the race for the simple reason that they have a poor risk-reward setup; they risk a legacy in exchange for a small chance at becoming a living avatar of some kind.
What\'s so funny about the likelihood that in a pretty big field of mostly very fast males (and Rachel if her form holds up) that Z gets beat by three horses? Assuming the quality is anthing close to what you expect in such a race, I think its very reasonable. The average top three numbers probably bear this out, too...
You know comedy and tragedy are closely intertwined and my \"comedy\" will be your tragedy if they are dumb enough to send her thinking she can win: your entire worldview will be threatened whereas I will merely shrug and say \"I was wrong.\"
Leamas
I am sorry, I was looking for a name from the seventies or eighties that was synonymous with giving a returning a champ an easy victory. Jerry Quarry is probably who I meant. Sorry Cooney fans...
Leamas
Wow, comedy and drama.
My \"entire worldview will be threatened\"?? Thats heavy.
Again, you\'re comparing numbers run on 2 different surfaces. Horses often run faster numbers on dirt than their synthetic numbers, Lookin At Lucky being the latest example.
BTW, shes part of the quality you could expect in the race. You make her sound like a second stringer.
Jerry Quarry was one tough SOB. Chuck Wepner would have been a better analogy.
Wepner, aka the \"Bayonne Bleeder\", yes? Not the best nickname for a fighter.
If Zenyatta is healthy she will absolutely run in the Classic. It shouldn\'t even be a point of discussion.
That race would represent the ultimate challenge for her, if she were fortunate enough to win, it would engrain her as one of the all-time greats. Period.
In all likelihood, the Classic will be a mix of (assuming they are healthy), horses like Quality Road, Rachel and several other very, very fast 9 furlong horses who are unproven at 10 furlongs. Same with Blame, he appears to be able to get 10 furlongs, but its still unproven. With Zenyatta, that question doesn\'t arise, she will get the 10 furlongs and likely will be running the fastest of anyone in the race the last 2 furlongs.
There has been ZERO intent on Zenyatta running in the Distaff. If she\'s 19-19 heading into the classic, why would they not take on all comers at 10 furlongs especially since she\'s already proven the distance won\'t beat her, only a faster 10 furlong horse, of which, none currently exist.
Besides, if Rachel\'s connections choose the Distaff, and along comes Life at Ten, Devil May Care, and maybe another real good one, this doesn\'t look like a piece of cake to me. Surely, Zenyatta\'s people would much rather face Rachel at 10 furlongs than 9 furlongs. I assume Rachel\'s people like their chances against Z at 9 furlongs better than the unknown 10 furlong distance.
I\'m just hoping all these great animals get to Churchill healthy and on top of their game. Its gonna be a blast.
I personally feel Rachel\'s best shot is the Distaff, the potential pace scenario in the Classic would be very hard to control and still have something left when the real running started.
Peace out
smalltimer Wrote:
.... If she\'s 19-19 heading into the
> classic, why would they not take on all comers at
> 10 furlongs especially since she\'s already proven
> the distance won\'t beat her, only a faster 10
> furlong horse, of which, none currently exist....
Really? And on a fast dirt track? On what do you base that statement?
I think there are two very possible scenarios to emerge here. One is that Z doesn\'t run because they won\'t put her record on the line in the toughest race of her career, and the other is that Rachel uncorks a monster race in the Classic to beat or nearly beat QR, who was not right in his last. BC exacta box = QR/Rachel
Leamas
Neither Rachel or QR have ever won a race at 10f, or did I miss something?
Two of the best races of Z\'s career were on the dirt at OP.
If she gets beat, its very unlikely to be either Rachel or QR.
Enough
I have to believe there will be places where you can make that head to head prop bet if they meet in the BC.
If RA runs in the \"Ladies\", I hope they would move the race to Saturday.
Leamas -- Team Zen much more concerned with HOY than undefeated career. If she
can be assured of HOY without running in any BC race, then you might have a point.
I personally think they are looking to run the table, and she will only miss the
Classic if dinged up.
Query: If the voting was conducted today, who would be 2010 HOY?
Jimbo -- I am expecting a \"lifetime best\" rant from you (and you have had some
good ones) if Zenyatta\'s final prep is in a race named for her.
smalltimer Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If she\'s 19-19 heading into the
> classic, why would they not take on all comers at
> 10 furlongs especially since she\'s already proven
> the distance won\'t beat her, only a faster 10
> furlong horse, of which, none currently exist.
>
****Opinion, not fact. QR has run faster at 10F than Z.
I\'d like to ask you an honest question.
Is your view that she can run \"as fast as she wants\" in any race? (e.g. If she had run in the Whitney she would have run the negative 3 necessary to beat Blame and QR instead of the 3 she needed to beat Rinverness?)
MonmouthGuy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> smalltimer Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > If she\'s 19-19 heading into the
> > classic, why would they not take on all comers
> at
> > 10 furlongs especially since she\'s already
> proven
> > the distance won\'t beat her, only a faster 10
> > furlong horse, of which, none currently exist.
> >
>
>
> ****Opinion, not fact. QR has run faster at 10F
> than Z.
>
> I\'d like to ask you an honest question.
>
> Is your view that she can run \"as fast as she
> wants\" in any race? (e.g. If she had run in the
> Whitney she would have run the negative 3
> necessary to beat Blame and QR instead of the 3
> she needed to beat Rinverness?)
Why do some of you insist on comparing dirt figures with synthetic figures?? Your example is ridiculous.
Why do you insist upon responding to every single comment about Smith or Zenyatta?
Zenyatta has run on dirt twice. Some horses improve on dirt, some do not, she has the same top on both.
TGJB Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Why do you insist upon responding to every single
> comment about Smith or Zenyatta?
>
> Zenyatta has run on dirt twice. Some horses
> improve on dirt, some do not, she has the same top
> on both.
I don\'t respond to every single comment. Hyperbole.
Tell me JB, how many different threads have been on your board talking about the same thing over and over?? Specifically, the whole Zenyatta thing and her numbers, or the whole dirt vs synthetic number, or the quality of her competition, or that she races mainly in California?
You can probably start at around 50 and go from there.
Since you mentioned Mike Smith, how many posts have there been about \"Wide Mike Smith\"?? When was the last time you told somebody..\"Why do you insist on responding to every Mike Smith reference with another wide ride comment\"??
BTW, I was responding to someone comparing a dirt race at Saratoga, with a Polycrap race at Del Mar with ridiculously slow fractions.
richiebee Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If RA runs in the \"Ladies\", I hope they would move
> the race to Saturday.
>
> Leamas -- Team Zen much more concerned with HOY
> than undefeated career. If she
> can be assured of HOY without running in any BC
> race, then you might have a point.
> I personally think they are looking to run the
> table, and she will only miss the
> Classic if dinged up.
>
> Query: If the voting was conducted today, who
> would be 2010 HOY?
>
> Jimbo -- I am expecting a \"lifetime best\" rant
> from you (and you have had some
> good ones) if Zenyatta\'s final prep is in a race
> named for her.
Probably LAL would be HOY. I disagree that HOY trumps record, btw: lot\'s of HOYs, very few undefeated lifetime runners with many graded stakes (despite the asterix for synth.
Leamas
--Leamas
I don\'t think I\'ve ever said she can run \"as fast as she wants.\" I may have said she has run as fast as she has had to in order to win. Pretty hard to dispute that comment. That\'s been the case 18 times in a row. She can be beaten.
The idea that QR ran a faster 10 furlongs is bogus, he was looking at Summer Bird\'s rear end at the finish line. QR hasn\'t proven he can win a 10f race, and Zenyatta has.
I\'m not concerned with big negative TG numbers when it comes to Z. If that were the case you could just bet the best negative number and win every single time. On paper, Blame couldn\'t beat QR last Saturday based on numbers, Blame was inferior on paper and in TG numbers, but we all know who won the race. So, lower TG numbers don\'t guaranteed victories, they only offer the excuse the horse lost at \"less than his/her best.\"
QR\'s a really nice horse, he may be experiencing some minor foot problems, or he may have just been a little flat when he got beat, maybe he just didn\'t feel like running, who knows?. So far, Zenyatta has managed to win 18 times and I haven\'t had to make one single excuse for her yet. If she gets beat I\'m sure I\'ll start out with a very legitimate excuse in that she is now a 6 year old mare.
There\'s always that fascination with the big negative numbers. Put them all in the gate at Churchill and may the best horse win. Not the fastest horse, the best horse that day. I\'ll take the horse that constantly overcomes adversity in the race and still runs like a champion. What TG number do you assess based on a will to win? Zenyatta is a negative 10 in that area.
A small problem on this board are the Rachel and QR lovers. Sorry, they\'ve both been beaten this year....Say it out loud: THEY\'VE BOTH BEEN BEATEN THIS YEAR.
Had Rachel returned this year as great as last year, or if QR was actually good enough to win every race in rousing fashion, this board would be filled with guys slobbering all over their accomplishments. I hope these 3 and Blame all remain healthy enough to test each other in November. 3 great horses are gonna lose in that horse race. The last 1/8th of that race could be spectacular.
I\'m not in love with Zenyatta or the type of campaign she\'s been conducting the last 2 years, but its hard to knock the results. But, I won\'t deny I\'m a very big fan of her, she overcomes whatever obstacles are in her way and she keeps finding a way to get the job done. She\'s had sub-par outs but still gets the job done, she\'s conceded a lot of weight and won.
If Zenyatta evers gets in a horse race and runs her typical 0 or -1, and Rachel or QR (or somebody) runs a huge negative number like a -3, to -7 then she\'s probably gonna get her doors blown off and that will end the discussion.
Hope I answered your honest question honestly.
Have a good one
PDub-- there\'s been a lot of talk about it, what\'s your point? Believe it or not, it doesn\'t go that all the people on the other side get to post their opinions, and you get equal time with all of them combined. You disagree, you\'re on the record, over and over. Enough unless there\'s a specific new point to answer.
Thank you for your honest response.
Blame had a great pattern and was coming off a strong closing negative 2 in the Foster. I thought he would need a little extra distance to get to QR and was hoping to get him at a price at 10F in the fall, which will not happen now.
Blame hasn\'t been beaten this year and he has been facing open competition at the highest levels in the older male handicap division. You may want to repeat that sentence out loud.