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Originally Posted by Revidere
By Cup day Curlin was not the same horse.
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This is the problem with Jackson's sour grapes(and many fans) - Curlin's performance is being judged by his finish position, when in actuality he was compromised by Robbie Albara'duh' while battling two of the world's best horses. It was a extremely strong effort. In spite of the sentiment, Curlin's BCC was actually an indication that Curlin did in fact handle the surface! You simply /can't do that much running on a surface you don't handle. Had he received a world class ride these horses would have dueled late with significantly different energy than what we saw.
Curlin's BCC was arguably his best race of 2008, depending on how you rate his DWC.
I do agree however that some of Curlin's late season efforts were not as impressive as Curlin on cup day or Curlin's better lifetime efforts. Interestingly(well only to a racing-nerd), Curlin's Man O'War turf effort was also highly misconstrued by the public. Red Rocks was able to effectively set an easy pace, well clear of the dueling cheapies. Albaraduh went wider and earlier (foreshadowing the Classic to anyone who would listen). While critics said he hated the turf, he had just run equal to Red Rocks while that rival received his optimum trip. Again counter-indicative of hating the surface.
Curlin almost certainly had a slight preference for dirt, but the deciding factor in the Breeders Cup Classic was not Curlin's preference, rather it was the level of genuine quality in the older handicap division vs the world class intermediate turf stars.
Rachel gives every indication that like most great horses she is versatile enough to run a big race on most surfaces.