Derby '12: Did We Learn Anyhting?

[Danzig]

hopefully i've learned to pay attention only to the horse, not whether i like the connections. need to make sure my personal preference doesn't get in the way of who should get bet.

[Scofield]

Learned Union Rags is more sizzle then steak.

[Dahoss]

Originally Posted by Scofield

Learned Union Rags is more sizzle then steak.

New name, same lame jokes, huh Casino?

[Calzone Lord]

Originally Posted by Dahoss

New name, same lame jokes, huh Casino?

That's him? What happened to the El Padrino guy...I thought that was also Casino?

It seemed like every single person who knocks speed figures because they have no understanding of them -- be it on a message board, working in the media, or working as a horsemen -- somehow every single one of them LOVED Union Rags to win the Derby.

It would have been hard to stomach if Union Rags won the race yesterday.

[clambeau]

The BAD NEWS is that the Union Rags Lovefest is not over yet...now it's the jock's fault cuz he had him 18 lengths back going into the CH Turn instead of the desired 6...or that he got "unlucky" and was unable to get into that "big beautiful stride" until it was too late.....why ? Cuz he's just not fast enough !!! The whole UR team from the ol lady to Matz to the fans just cant believe that the darn horse is just not fast enough.

Even if they don't believe in speed figures.....shouldn't they believe their eyes?

[cmorioles]

I was no fan of UR, but Leparoux has an uncanny ability to take the speed out of any horse he rides in the big races.

[clambeau]

Leparoux's and easy goat to blame but Castellano didn't exactly set blazing fractions when he rode him either...This time it's the horse, not the jockey.
(Note I said THIS time)

[Calzone Lord]

Originally Posted by cmorioles

Probably the trainer too. This horse seems to have had the speed trained out of him.

Yep.

Leparoux is a passive jockey -- but Matz might have also done too good of a training job with him.

Union Rags went an unblinkered 1/8th in 10.20 at the nations premier 2yo sale. He was the fastest unblinkered male horse at that entire sale. Union Rags went wire-to-wire in the 6.5f Saratoga Special 2nd time out after setting a 21 3/5th first quarter.

Union Rags was one of my absolute highest rated 2yo's from all the 2yo in training sales last year ... and those type of horses are much better sprinters 99% of the time. As much as I don't like to admit it -- Classic distance horses don't ever make that list of mine. Officer and Eightyfiveinafifty types do.

Union Rags is obviously a cool customer and Matz has him so relaxed that he normally breaks slow and looks awfully comfortable rating behind the pace.

Guys like Bill Mott and Neil Howard would have been proud of this training job. It's been a masterpiece of training and horsemanship by Matz.

So good in fact, that's he turned a horse who probably could have been an elite sprinter/miler for most people, into a Dollar Bill type of horse who doesn't break well, relaxes, finds trouble, and doesn't run fast...but always finishes up nicely.

I happen to think Matz trained this one way too good. The Union Rags that I first got to know -- before he was even raced -- looked pretty friggen fast to me.

[DaTruth]

Originally Posted by Danzig

hopefully i've learned to pay attention only to the horse, not whether i like the connections. need to make sure my personal preference doesn't get in the way of who should get bet.

You should always bet on horses owned and/or trained by people that you personally know and don't like.

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by DaTruth

You should always bet on horses owned and/or trained by people that you personally know and don't like.

There isnt enough money in circulation for me to follow this advice.

[Cannon Shell]

Hopefully a few jockeys learned that letting your horse run its race and letting the chips fall where they may is a much better strategy than rating them into submission thereby giving them zero chance of success.

[tywizard]

On Santa Anita Handicap day I let Doug beat me out of the pick 4 by not using willyconker. I swore that I would not let him beat me again - I even wrote it in the stakes thread on this site that day.

After DLL and Trinniberg, I'll have another was my next toss.

When Aruna scratched, I singled Hungry Island which allowed for pretty deep coverage in the Derby. I was sick to my stomach after the race for quite a while as I was still alive in the pick 4 with six horses.

So, I learned that I should take my own advice and pay attention to past mistakes.

[cmorioles]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Hopefully a few jockeys learned that letting your horse run its race and letting the chips fall where they may is a much better strategy than rating them into submission thereby giving them zero chance of success.

Amen to that.

[declansharbor]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Hopefully a few jockeys learned that letting your horse run its race and letting the chips fall where they may is a much better strategy than rating them into submission thereby giving them zero chance of success.