Mig "spotty"??

The guy has ridden on the biggest premire circuit in the world for the last 25 years. A "spotty" rider does not do that.

And have you seen some of the sh!t the mig has had to put up with. He's got more metal in him than the Terminator. And on top of that hes been on some pretty bad horses as of late, but I am sure that he will still be in the top 8 at saratoga. He does it almost every year.

So do tell me how he is a "spotty" rider.

Ain't brain surgery.The guy blew the ride,and people are lickin' nut (as usual.)For every bad ride that has ever been given,there is a guy out there ready to say it wasn't a bad ride.Yes, you are bailing him out.He won with Behaving Badly from the 1 hole,and should have won with Bling from the 1 hole.He was the favorite because he was the best horse(even with this career- ending 1 hole.).Yes,he would easily have beaten Songster with any ride at all.

Yeah I know Mig's a warrior and all, and he's been better as of late. But he's been a fringe player on the circuit for those 25 years. He has never really stepped up to the big time, winning stake races consistently, and that is why I say he is spotty. I'm going to disagree with the top 8 this year, way too tough a colony.

The 2 situations are completely different, but I guess I'm wrong there too. Let me ask you this, with all of your knowledge, did you ever think that maybe Baffert instructed gomez to sit behind the pacesetter, because of the post, like Behaving Badly did today? It was racing luck, it happens everyday. Sometimes the hole doesn't open when you need it too.

If you knew anything about race watching you would know that this was actually a situation of one horse winning because another rider blew the ride. Clearly the second place finisher, who I did not like and wasn't one of four I used on various Pick-6 tickets, was best and only an unnecessarily agressive ride cost him the win.

By the way, love how you use " we ", as though you are somehow involved with a trainer that is hard pressed to acknowledge your existance. Or, perhaps I misunderstood, and " we " was actually you and the other chalk eating weasels at OTB paying the 5% surcharge.

And, let me add, that once again if you could afford the $5 for a form you would realize it was Joel Cruz's first win in NY.

Nice hit and run....your specialty.

Everything isn't racing luck.I know you want to use that to explain away a bad ride,but the fact is that he gave these 2 jocks the opportunity to ride his horse.If you sit right behind the leader on the rail(and you are the chalk)then it isn't "racing luck" when you quickly get locked in down there.It is what will happen 90% of the time.He didn't stay down there today right? He had no plan on Bling.He rode him like he was 5-1(just sit and get lucky.)Well,on chalk you can't expect to get out of the position he was in.Almost all the mistakes he makes are due to him not anticipating other jocks are going to try to get the chalk in trouble.

This is useless.You are never going to agree that getting stuck like that was predictable(once he stupidly put himself right behind the leader,and enticed Prado to lock him down.)That was not luck.That was stupidity.You really expected him to get out? The problem is that the guy made the same mistake all winter out here.

First of all, the 90% of the time is straight crap. What difference does it make if it was chalk or not, if he was on a bomb do you think it would have made a difference? The hole didn't open, and that's that. Do you think Prado or Vega cared what the odds were, they were riding to win like Gomez, and all 3 did. You're stuck on the fact that he was the chalk. I honestly don't think that all of the other jocks are sitting there wondering how to get the chalk in trouble, since the chalk only wins approximately 1/3 of the time. I notice you had no response to the Baffert question. I think baffert told him to sit, and that's why Baffert had no gripes with the ride.

Here's a thought then, don't bet him. I mean what does that say about you that you keep making the "mistake". I don't think it was predictable, I see guys do it everyday, and in this case the hole didn't open. that's it, but you know what, if the hole had opened I'm sure you would have had no problem with the ride.

If you don't think jocks have an eye on the chalk horse,THEN YOU'RE A FOOL.I play the horses I like,and won't avoid one due to a jock.People make mistakes.I understand that(only too well.)When people say this guy is a great jock,I just can't agree(because I have seen all the mistakes he makes..usually repetitive ones...and you can't be great if you make that many dumb mistakes.)As far as trainers go,lets get something straight here.1)Trainers can simply wheel a horse back,and try again.2)Owners request certain jocks,and so trainers can't really complain about rides(they may lose the ability to use that jock.) 3) a guy like Gomez is a hothead ,and Baffert knows he will be defensive if he is critical of him.4)Trainers simply take jocks off horses if they want to.The main reason they don't get that upset though,is they can always try again.People who bet,and lose money due to a bad ride,don't get another chance.They get one chance.Jock and trainer just tee it up again.Very,very different situations.

Yeah you're right I'm a fool. Because I'm sure Baffert really gives a s**t if Gomez is defensive. Baffert is a straight shooter, and he loves to have his name in print. I have heard absolutely nothing coming from him about the ride, and if you think trainers don't get upset at a bad ride, or if they don't win then you haven't been to a track. The thing about horse racing is you may not get another shot, so like in every other post in this thread you are wrong. Baffert has done enough as a trainer to be able to criticize whomever he wants, and he didn't. You see Frankel do it, and who can forget how critical Lukas was about Victor Espinoza's ride on Spain in the 2001 Distaff. And jock and trainer don't just tee it up, they want to win, and if you think Gomez was just "teeing it up" I want to see you get on a horse and try and come up the rail. A lot of jocks won't do it, and Gomez will. Look I get what you're mad at, you needed the horse because you bet him, and I have been victimized by many a bad ride, but I just think you're wrong. I do know that Gomez is one of the most sought after jocks in the world, by all of the top trainers, and I don't think they would want him if he wasn't great. Just taking a shot but I'm thinking they know more than you. And Pletcher could have had anyone come to ride first call for him when Johnny V. went down, and he CHOSE Gomez. I challenge you to find a better horse racing mind than Pletcher.

Like I said,the guy put in a bad ride when I needed a good ride.He let me down,and I don't expect others to feel the same(about him) until he lets them down.It is as simple as that.If somebody rides poorly for you,then you care,and not before that.I understand that you don't give a sht about the ride on Bling.Most people don't care about rides until it keeps them from winning.I disagree with you about trainers though(they edit themselves hugely as far as public consumption concerning rides.) Most of them are too scared to even give a jock instructions.Almost every instance that I see an interview of a trainer before a race(when asked about where they want the horse to be in a race,)they say "I leave that up to my rider." If your saying a trainer has to say a jock gave a bad ride(before you consider it a bad ride,)then there aren't gunna be very many bad rides.They change jocks when they don't like a ride.I have heard Baffert complain more about less established type riders(Santiago,and some apprentices,)but not much about the main riders he uses.

According to you,every jock on a horse breaking from the 1 hole (in one turn races) now has an iron clad excuse (if they lose.)Just can't be expected to win from there at all.Way too hard for a jockey to make decisions that will lead to a victory from there."Roll of the dice" ...."pray"

I gotta agree with Scuds on this one.

Not that it was a terrible ride by Gomez, but that when you're on a chalk (or any horse that looks good on paper), you have to ride differently than if you're on a wild longshot. Prado knows who he has to beat in that situation, and it ain't Fabulous Strike.

Mig's been one of my faves for years and years... I'd also add to the above that he's overcome one debilitating major injury after another including the mistakenly re-set broken arm that could have ended his career.

my $0.02...

Mig's a favorite of mine. Still going strong and he's overcome a lot.

In general.... The California jocks are overrated. Small fields in almost all the better races. They rarely need to adjust or adapt. Plus the syle of racing in SoCal is far different than back east. In Cali, they ride like hell to the quarter pole and hope to crawl home first. East coast it's more the opposite ... the jocks back east ride to get position then work from the 3/8 on in. PVal would make the top 5 at any meet but any of the others?

Apprentices are overrated. LeParoux, Rosie, Garcia. Cannot put them in the same sentence as top riders until they prove it after dropping the bug. 5 lbs may not be enough to win any one race, but it means an awful lot over several hundred races. Whatever happened to Foglesonger?

Jockeys who dominate lesser circuits are overrated. I.E., Bravo looks like Arcaro every year in Jersey, but looks very ordinary at Gulfstream. Happens every year. Another is Castro. Doing ok at Monmouth but last year at Calder, he looked great on everything he rode. Now, his inexperience is being exposed and there's been some races he's looked just awful, especially routing on turf. There are very few, if any, top jocks at lesser tracks who can compete with the big boys... Ramon, arguably can. Russell Baze? Nope. Castro? No. Jeremy? Arguably maybe, but I say no.

IMO, the top jockeys are easy to identify. They're the top money winners.

What the heck is that avatar, kasept!? Bring back the Neccos!!

;>)
--Dunbar

As you suggest, apprentices may be over-rated skill-wise, but the weight allowance sometimes makes them look good. The top apprentices usually have a pretty good ROI.

In fact, isn't this a pretty good argument against those that say weight isn't important at all in capping? We routinely see apprentices drop by the wayside after they lose the bug.

I agree with what you said about the jockeys from lesser circuits.

--Dunbar

Joel Cruz got his first win of the meet yesterday in the 7th at Belmont because JJ (who I normally love) thought he was in a 5 1/2 furlong sprint instead of a 1 mile route....dumbass. Hands down the loudest I have ever cussed a jockey out at the OTB.

Ateam great post. And I have to admit when I am wrong and at the end of last year I scoffed at Scuds notion that the guy blows chalk rides and told him that was nonsense. Scuds I apologize. After watching the guy ride closely the last 6 months I have concluded exactly that and what Ateam says.
The reason for it is that its become painfully obvious to me that Gomez does not do the prepatory work required to ride consistently at the very highest level. As Ateam said, you don't ride to beat Fabulous Strike when Songster is in the race. Hes also obviously a hothead in the saddle(I don't know him so I don't know anything at all about what he is like in real life, seems like a very nice guy to me who is respectful to everyone in that venue). The guy doesnt like being put in a box or trap by another rider and instead of just grabbing and going wide to get out of the trap, he gets intent on getting through as if proving a point to the guy who locked him in, I've witnessed this on more occasions than just the bizarre ride on Too Much Bling.
To be consistent like Edgar and Johnny at the very highest level of the game you must study the pp's and know who your competition is and how your opponents run and enter battle with some sort of plan a, plan b, and plan c. Its impossible to always have a plan because things happen all the time to screw up what should develop on paper. But that doesnt mean you just make things up as you go along. You have to plan out your rides and expect to be race ridden by your opponents.
I haven't seen a rider posess as much strength as Gomez( I bet he could bench press a volkswagen) since Chris Antley as a younger man, Antley was strong as an ox when he was young. I've seen Gomez seemingly carry a horse to the lead and been in total awe of some of his rides. Of course then he gets on a 4-5 shot in the next race and gets him locked on the rail in traffic when all he needs to do is stay clear and out of trouble. This guy is the single most frustrating rider I have ever seen in 23 years of following the sport, never seen anything even close to his Jekyl and Hide act. One minute you wanna erect a statue of the guy, an hour later you are wishing him painful hemmorhoids.
There isn't anyone alive who can convince me that he fails to read the DRF and do his homework. he just makes it up as he goes along. If he learns to keep his emotions in check while in the saddle and start learning how to study PP's and craft rides he has no boundaries. Thing is he is no spring chicken and you would think if he was ever gonna do those things he would have started already. Johnny and Edgar's prep work sets them aside from the rest, they always choose the right course of action if it is at all available to them.

Fact is, you can't ride any pure speed horse from the inside the same way you can from an outside post. Doesn't matter if it's at 4/5 or 45-1. If you're outside you can break a half-step slow or choose to lay just off with still a clear path ahead of you. From the inside, no "in-race" options allowed. You either send hard or decide VERY quickly to tug and go around. I doubt TMB would have been good enough to go around Songster that day. I also thought Gomez was indecisive and laying about 1/2 off the top two down the back killed any chance he had. The only other explanation is that TMB just didn't run to his capability that day.

So, the best horse won? Is that what you are saying?

Kev I singled the winner in the pik-6 and have to tell you that Sly Diamond is a dime stopping dog. His only win came with the aid of a supremely speed biased sloppy track in which he made a ridculously easy lead. the horse ran the exact same race he ran yesterday a time or two before. Seemingly homefree and then grabbed. Hes a mutt, the kind who just plain stops no matter what the pace is. Trust me, thats not the last time hes gonna pull that act on you. The winner was given a bad ride as well, horrible to be exact. He had the winner to close to the pace off the bat and tried to put him in a drive on the backside(total stretch runner you should sit still on until the top of the lane) and he was wider than he needed to be.
The reason Cruz was on him is because hes a crazy rogue according to my clocker. Last time he was entered he was scratched in the paddock because he was so insane that he refused to be saddled. Thats the kind of horse that a top rider says no ****ing thanks when offered the ride, The two grand he can make for winning the race as opposed to a possible stint in a wheelchair just isnt worth it. My clocker said he had trained much better since the paddock incident and his first two sheet numbers were better than anything that anyone in the field had EVER run!!! You toss out the speed favoring sealed track he lost on last time and figure all he had to do was run down a dimestopper and the race pretty much went according to script. Trust me, Diamond Jim will stop on you again if you bet him and he actually was ridden to perfection. Kev he most likely has a breathing problem and the only way to get one of those horses home in front is to open up daylight and get so far in front that they cant catch you. If you try to sit chilly and slow down the tempo all it does is keep the opponents lapped onto you as you turn for home and when he feels that pressure he stops even worse.
I like to think I know a thing or two about watching races and trust me, that horse came home the last 1/4 in about 28, or slower than pacers at the Meadowlands come home in. Hes a dime stopper that i can guess with a HIGH degree of certainty has a lazy flap or palate who can't breathe real well in the lane. Forget him, hes Finger lakes bound after he wins that condition(if he ever wins it).

This is more or less what I have been trying to say. Yeah Gomez has his share of bad rides like everyone else, but there is no denying the man is immensly talented. I just think this was a case more or circumstance than anything he did. I also think Baffert might have told Gomez to sit, or maybe they both came up with that, like with Behaving Badly, because in watching the replay he obviously takes a hold. I'm with you when you say that for TMB to swing 3 wide he wasn't going to run down Songster, who is a improving quality colt. Lets also not forget that Belmont, as usual on big racing days was a drag strip, and it was very difficult to pass horses. Songster got a perfect trip, and capitalized on it.

Gomez will probably always be the best 7/2 jock,but I can't single the guy ever again on a chalk(no matter how deserving.)That is my point here(I just can't trust this guy to elude trouble while on the best horse.)

TMB was sort of a tough single that day anyway.

On a more important note,Kobayashi is getting ready to defend his hot dog -eating title on ESPN. LOL

Do you even follow the DRF or racing in general? Baffert said before they went to NY from Cali that they didn't want to run considering he drew the 1 hole. And that was before the race. then in retrospect he was right they all broke well but gomez cannot afford to send going that far and then let songster sit in 3rd and run by them when they turn for home. He was stuck and by the sounds of the interviews by baffert after the race he knew that was gonna happen. The horse never has won from the inside. It is just asking too much for a 3yo to go balls out for 7 F. You Sound like you need to read the form a little more before you pin a bad ride on someone.

OF COURSE I SHOULDN'T HALF TO TELL YOU THIS IF YOUR A TRUE HANDICAPER. I SINGLED SONGSTER on my Pick 4 doesn't take a genious to figure that out!!!

That's big! I've had the news on and it's been all about the Shuttle. WTF? A little Liquid Nails and Duct tape should get that heap fixed up right proper.

Kobayashi cannot lose. Dogs, burgers, rice balls (20 pounds?!?) cow brains. Don't matter.

Another "one-week-later" guru. Tell us, please, if Baffert didn't want to run given the draw, pray tell why he ran? He didn't send, he didn't take back. He just sat there waiting to lose. Gomez waited too long or the horse wasn't good enough. And, yes, of course, WAY mad props to you for singling that 2/1 in that small field. Oooooo, so very daring. Do let us know when your 900 number is up and running.

Horse was dead tired, but not of being beaten. It was a 2yo race with all first time starters. Tired, spooky, clueless baby.

Yeah,and people blew good money yesterday trying to beat Behaving Badly yesterday too(cuz she had the 1 hole.)Fact is that Gomez can ride just fine until you need him to do something for you.If you bet against the best horse(in hopes they will get into trouble,)you'll usually lose.Everybody is gunna use the 1 hole to justify Gomez being stuck there in a paralyzed animal mode.It wasn't an ideal post,but the horse is 5 lengths the best horse.The horse never is given anywhere to run,and still isn't beaten that badly.Think about it.He puts the horse in no mans land,and gee whiz Gomer Pyle..They seal him in (as he seemed to be asked to be,)and then the excuse is that he got sealed in? I don't understand the idea of getting sealed in,and then thinking he will get out(as the chalk.)Again,I think he rides horses without recognizing that chalk will be a target.He rode Bling asif he was 5-1,and would be able to eventually get out of that spot.Well,even money horses in New York aren't getting out of that spot.5-1 shots? Probably will.There is a difference,and he just is taking longer than necessary to learn this.Guy is mentally in the lower 10%,and physically is in the top 10%.

LOL. Put f'ing Kobayashi on the horse and he wins. Gomez either waited to lose there or wasn't good enough. I'm sure LoseGlue knows that. He shouldn't "half" to tell us .

According to you clowns,Bling should have been 3-1(because Baffert didn't like the 1 hole.)Gee,seems like people thought the horse was good enough to overcome it.Real easy,after the fact,to say a horse was a bad favorite,or a play against,or that the post made him unplayable.This is Gander style.

Well said, and I'm with you on Songster, he was a much better single than TMB. SCUDS is just sour because his handicapping was poor, not the ride.

Yeah, there are no bad rides.Just bad handicappers.

No TMB was the correct favorite off of his PP's, but come on, 6-5 in a competitive race where the trainer is obviously uncomfortable about running. Maybe TMB wasn't 100% who knows, but Baffert who is usually as confident as can be tipped everyone off to this one.

No there are both, as well as bad bets, and TMB was a bad bet to win in that race plain and simple.

Kobayashi is destroying the competition once again.What a star.54 dogs n' buns.A new world record.

It was an awful ride. Nothing good was going to happen sitting 1/2 or 3/4 length off the lead on the rail. Had to send there, hang Songster 3-w then 2-w and try to last.