ATR Hall of Fame Debate: Gio Ponti?

[Rudeboyelvis]

32 posts into a HoF debate before a Zenyatta reference - it's getting better.




Maybe the barometer should be ANY horse that ever finished within a length of Zenyatta gets in - no problem,,, Gio Pointi would make it (barely) on that criteria alone.

[Merlinsky]

Originally Posted by Rudeboyelvis

32 posts into a HoF debate before a Zenyatta reference - it's getting better.




Maybe the barometer should be ANY horse that ever finished within a length of Zenyatta gets in - no problem,,, Gio Pointi would make it (barely) on that criteria alone.

Anabaa's Creation is HOF bound in that case. I dunno, I'm torn. When I try to explain why he shouldn't be, I end up talking myself into it, but when I try to say he should get in, I see flaws in the argument. Not that he has to be breaking course/stakes records right and left to get in the HOF, but out of curiosity, does he have any?

At first I wondered why anybody was assuming he'd get in the HOF, but when you look at his accomplishments and the time he's been putting them together, it's hard not to have a lot of respect for him and think 'well if not Gio Ponti, then who?' I know this is the US HOF, but American turf runners still have the shadow of the Europeans looming in terms of their quality. Is that having an impact here? This isn't a competition for tallest midget by any means, but does it seem like standing out here is treated with less respect? Is it a sense of big fish/small pond that's unfair to Gio Ponti? Should how American horses compare to the Euros even matter here?