[philcski]

Originally Posted by The Indomitable DrugS

Basically, for starters, he was stoutly rated back behind the early pace. The 2nd place horse in that race, who would win a Graded Stake race a few months later...was on the pace, through early fractions that were SLOWER than those set by a wire-to-wire MCL winner at the same distance, an hour earlier on in the day.

Basically, Discreet Cat had to rally 4-to-5 wide around the turn, from about 6th position, into the teeth of comically slow early fractions, after having been rated stoutly behind the pace in his first start off a good sized layoff.
That, my friend, is a very tough trip...and that should be very clear to even the most trip challenged of people.

Discreet Cat won that race as stylish and easy as possible, his final time was the fastest at the distace all meet long at Saratoga, and was the fastest at the distance in like 3 years...he exploded through the stretch, and all the while his jockey was looking all over for competiton. It was an insane effort.

Obviously a better individual performance than his romp in Dubai over Simpatico Bribon and Invasor....or his Cigar Mile win where he equaled Easy Goer's track record, and wasn't far off the Dr. Fager's world record.

Comically slow? The pace was FASTER than average for optional claimers, and he sat behind two hopelessly overmatched duelers until the 1/2 mile pole. You make it sound like a Derby hell trip. It was a joke of a race and he destroyed a sh!t field, big deal.