ATR Hall of Fame Debate: Gio Ponti?

[Calzone Lord]

Originally Posted by OldDog

I only attached this to the HOF thread in order to not start a new Gio thread. Other than what I quoted above, what I was taking more to the point of the article was



A lot of time is spent talking about the durability of the thoroughbred. Here is a horse (not a gelding) competing consistently for years in Grade 1 company, and doing damn well at it, while we spend hours discussing horses who head for the shed with a dozen or fewer starts. It's easy for owners to say, "We love racing." But show me more than a few today who run a horse this long in G1 races. I take my hat off to Shane Ryan, and Christophe Clement, and win or lose Saturday, to Gio Ponti.

He's probably worth more on the track than in the breeding shed. Our turf races are a joke -- and breeders don't fall for late running American turf horses as stallions.

Gio Ponti RNA'd real cheap as a 2yo (I believe at the FT Calder 2yo sale) -- I doubt his offspring will be prime candidates for pinhookers at yearling sales either.

[OldDog]

Originally Posted by Calzone Lord

He's probably worth more on the track than in the breeding shed. Our turf races are a joke -- and breeders don't fall for late running American turf horses as stallions.

Gio Ponti RNA'd real cheap as a 2yo (I believe at the FT Calder 2yo sale) -- I doubt his offspring will be prime candidates for pinhookers at yearling sales either.

I appreciate your response. Would it be reasonable then to say that turf horses typically race more years than dirt horses?

[Calzone Lord]

Originally Posted by OldDog

I appreciate your response. Would it be reasonable then to say that turf horses typically race more years than dirt horses?

Generally turf horses seem to.

IMO -- Gio Ponti has stuck around for the simple fact that he's been more valuable racing than breeding.

Had he accomplished the same success in dirt racing -- he would have been whisked away a year or two ago because he would have been worth more in a breeding shed VS a campaigning on a race track.