I would by no means call myself an old timer but, having been a sheet disciple and student of sheet theory for 20 years, I am no newbie either. Is it me, or is the form cycle almost totally gone from the game? Short, long, grass, dirt, it feels like horses more than ever are running that top effort off the bench, usually accompanied by lower than morning line odds.  I dont necessarily mean Saratoga, where freshening horses to gear up for the Spa is a time honored tradition. I mean all over, 365 days a year. Is it the new pattern of run big, fall apart, get laid up a few months and let the clenbute bulk them back up and get em ready, then pop that top again off the bench?

Third off layoff, recovery patterns, and other useful condition lines seem less and less profitable. Nowadays, if a horse doesnt run a top or close to it off the bench, I almost assume they are a slug, as opposed to the past when horses needed a race or two to get them in shape. To me, trying to guess who is ready to run off a layoff is a losing proposition, not to mention it is not very interesting. You are way behind the 8 ball without access to inside information if this is how the game is going to be played.

Is it miracle stuff? Change in methods? Less soundness in the breed? Or am I just nuts (very likely)?

Apologies for over reacting, I definitely was more than a little snide....but let me ask you ask a question to continue an intelligent discourse; what is the incentive for some of these deep pocketed owners to give those \"new blood\" trainers any horses? In the past, they had no choice once there main guys hit stall limits. It made such a lower barrier to entry for those young assistants. Owners could easily give the assistant horses rather than deal with a complete stranger outside the circle. With no stall limits, heck just give \'em all to Chad and Todd. I know guys like Blum and a few these partnerships are spreading it around a little bit but not like the past, and it certainly isnt out of necessity. There is nothing stopping them from letting young talent develop in the minor barns then calling them up to the majors for a run in Chad\'s barn. That is the kind of stuff I worry about too. Thanks!

Will give you Abreu and Rudy, but the rest of the list? Cmon. Working for famous fathers, training 5k claimers at GP or guys who have been training for 5-10 years BEFORE the super barns became a real epidemic, was not the type of \"new blood\" I was referring to. The fact that the first name on the list was Cherie shows your attempt was to name drop and sound more informed and smarter than the rest. Dont need to do that with me, Im pretty plugged in too. But congrats, most people on this board know who all those people are too. Cherie wouldnt be the first to get burnt out working for Chad. Any of Chad\'s owners giving her horses??? I would take action she is back working as an assistant within two years.


Nice stake tomorrow in NY. Five horses, three of them from Chad\'s barn. But there is no problem....Luna, Crichton and Dobles are on the prowl.

You clearly missed the point of my post and/or article. But keep informing me, because like you said, I dont pay attention.

Good article. I mentioned this in a post about Randi Persaud of all people, back in April. I promise you the biggest complaint in NY right now is not Jason Servis and his ridiculous stats (although that isnt helping either) but rather the unlimited stalls that guys like Todd and Chad get. There simply arent enough stalls for everyone else and it is making the  fields short and uncompetitive. Letting two or three guys control the majority of the stock literally allows them to manipulate the entry box. I heard Chad has almost 200 head at Saratoga right now, although who knows if that is true. Not only does this knock smaller guys out of the game, but it brings no new blood in as far as trainers go either. Back in the day, stalls were limited so owners had to give horses to SOMEONE once their main guy(s) were full. You saw a lot of assistants and new guys going out on their own with the support of those owners. Other than a Jonathan Thomas or Falcone, where are all the new up and coming trainers? The short answer is theyre still working for the mega barns because owners who want to expand or buy more stock have no need to look elsewhere. Chad and Todd can get as many stalls as they want. And the game survives because of gambling. Make the races unbettable five horse fields day after and day, and THAT is your biggest threat to the game right now. Give me a 12 horse field with 5 juice guys and people will still bet vigorously. A 5 horse field with two Chads, two Todds and a Randi Persaud slug....no thanks, I will find a better endeavor for my money.

Correct.....but two points a) China Horse Club not involved with Noble Indy and more importantly b) there is a big difference in running the clear second choice in the race with a big chance and deciding to run a horse who goes off 15/1, no? Almost seems like Noble Indy is the consolation prize from Winstar to Pletcher....cant run Audible, but we will let you run Noble Indy, and now no one will think we are holding anyone back to favor Justify. Not buying it Elliot! Weak!

If you guys think this has anything to do with distance limitations or even a gluteal strain, (if that\'s even true), you\'re crazy. Pletcher wants to run Audible but the owners arent allowing it, would be my guess.

Nothing you can do after a day of short fields and favorites but turn the page and look ahead, so with that in mind......It would appear on the surface that there may have been a regression from Justify in Baltimore yesterday. Seeing how he came out of the last sloppy track race with questions of lameness and skin irritations, I wonder how he comes out of the Preakness.

What kind of Belmont are we going to see in 3 weeks, a Big Brown/War Emblem style flop? A Smarty/Chrome type effort but coming up short? Or a dominant Pharoah-esque romp into the history books? Early thoughts?

Heck, if you thought 2.9 / 1 was value on the win end, then youre best bet was probably to place, as he paid 2/1 to place. But like many have said here, the Derby is a totally different animal in terms of betting parameters due to tge large field, dead money and potential for a major score. If I thought was 5/2 was value on a favorite in 7 horse claimer on a Tuesday at Parx, my bet is probably going to be different than if it were the Derby.

Comical in so many ways

An 11 horse grass stake at 5f doesn\'t do that??

Can anyone explain why there is an optional claimer two races before the Oaks?

An oddity that this race produced 3 Derby entrants this year, and you could argue sheet wise, some pretty interesting candidates to say the least.

Again, you are generalizing racing vs. the entire population. It isn\'t a school or practicing/enforcing law, or medicine. This is a sport...one that is contested for millions of dollars daily, via purse money, gambling, and breeding/selling. The health of the sport does not depend on closing your eyes real hard, and hoping everyone acts with integrity because they are SUPPOSED to do so. It comes from governing bodies punishing and removing those that don\'t. And as immature or sad or pathetic as you think my position is, it is a position based in reality, not in a philosophy textbook or ethics classroom.

I own horses, I breed horses, I race and sell horses, and I can promise you no trainer or owner is saying \"Man, I wish that Jorge Navarro would change his ways and have some integrity.\" The complaints are to the racing officials and powers that be, to punish and get rid of such criminals. Anytime you have so much money at stake, people are going to try to cheat. When the governing bodies who oversee the sport KNOW the cheating is going on and do little or nothing about it, you\'re damn right that display of a lack of integrity is the problem. Any other way you slice it would be, like I said, naive.

Solomini has a lower ml than Mendelsson...let that sink in

The words integrity and horse racing dont often collide in the same sentence. You\'re naieve if you think the first priority on a trainer\'s list of responsibilities is integrity. We arent talking teachers or doctors or police officers here. I am not saying everyone in the game should cheat. Im saying I understand why they do.

The problem isnt a guy like Jorge Navarro, it\'s the laughably soft penalties a guy like that has to face for cheating. Not to mention the tracks that do not even WANT to bust him (looking at you mth park) because he fills their races. How about the fake program trainers who really are just beards for guys like Kirk Ziadie that have been ruled off the grounds and cant get licensed? Or a Marcus Vitali who seemed to survive his slap on the wrist like nothing happened. He is allowed right back in Gulfstream. Ramon Preciado\'s suspension is almost up btw if anyone was curious. Peter Miller has horses testing positive for cocaine. Any dent in his career? Dont get me started on Linda Rice.

What other industry can you blatantly get caught cheating multiple times and still be allowed to operate, let alone prosper? The integrity problem in this game does not lie with the horsemen. It lies with the governing bodies that allow them to do it so easily. THEY are the ones who are ignoring integrity in favor of the bottom line.