Dominguez

[Linny]

Originally Posted by parsixfarms

Dominguez has hardly ridden at all for Contessa this winter (after seemingly riding all his horses the past few winters), and he's still winning at the same clip. I'd assume that the added (successful) connections that he's made this winter lead him and his agent to conclude that he'll be able to make a go of it when "the big boys" return.

Losing Contessa but geting Asmussen is a step UP not back. As-man doesn't start as many but he wins alot more. When Asmussen doesn't have a mount for him he still has lots of shots to ride the best in the race. Contessa sends out so many that it figures a jock like Ramon would be stuck on a lot of junk too.
I like Ramon's style because he seems to be able to get a horse to relax without fighting him. Trainers tell me they like him because he rarely uses "more horse" than he needs to.
As to any particular ride, they all make mistakes. I've seen brilliant rides from 7lb bugs (rare, but it does happen, often inadvertently) and bonehead moves from Hall of Famers. I've seen some times when I cannot figure out what Ramon is doing but others when I can't imagine that he can win and yet he does, often to beat me.
As someone who rides jumping horses I will tell you that horses are not baseballs, they don't always just go when you ask or stay where you put them. The perfect throw will tag the runner at third base, the perfect ride may still get you to the outside fence, or in a box turning for home or worse. Sometimes the rider give you the best ride and the horse just won't or can't cooperate.

[NTamm1215]

One of the things about Dominguez that is interesting yet puzzling on a day-in and day-out basis is getting used to his style. He is almost all arms and legs on a horse so you never really know when he has a lot of horse or when he's really getting to the bottom of them. Because he's so tall you never really see him "sit down" on a horse but you can certainly see when he sets them down.

I think he's going to be the leading rider in NY by an incredibly wide margin for the year (no surprise because he will start on the Fla boys with a huge edge) and I doubt that the inner track riding title will be the last he one he earns in 2009.

NT