Graded Earnings: Is there an alternative?

[Linny]

With rare exception, I think that the right horses generally get in. It is no one's responsibilty but the trainer's to assure enough earnings.

That said, how about a point system for graded earnings with 3yo races being worth 1.5 x any 2yo earnings and sprints being valued at 1/2 those of routes.
The concern I see with my own idea is that races like the Derby require some of those "sprinter-miler" types for the benefit of the pace. Teurflesberg keeps coming up on this thread and while I like the colt, I think he has no shot in the Derby. Why do I still think he should run? If the owners want to and he's eligible, he should run. We need him for some pace and his connections have done what is required to get there. If he "keeps out" a horse that someone deems "more worthy," the fault is with the excluded horse's connections for not getting him there. Either the horse was not good enough to get the $$$ or they tried to use 1 graded race and had back luck or something.

Part of the appeal of the Derby is that anything can happen. Most people would have said Giacomo shouldn't have even been in the gate, yet he won. As for "flukey" races, you cannot make any judgement about whether a race was a fluke until horses start to run back. Charismatic was considered a fluke until he won the Preakness. War Emblem was a fluke until he followed up with the Preakness and Haskell.