Big UK races Fri/Sat June 5,6

[horses4courses]

Epsom Downs hosts the Oaks and Derby on Fri/Sat.
The Coronation Stakes is, also, run there on Saturday,
and often features BC Turf horses, past and future.

Not sure if TVG is going to show any of it,
but all the major ADWs should have a signal.

Epsom Oaks - Friday 6-5-15 @ 1130am ET

http://www.sportinglife.com/racing/racecards/05-06-2015/epsom-downs/racecard/667485/investec-oaks-fillies-group-1


Coronation Stakes - Saturday 6-6-15 @ 1010am ET

http://www.sportinglife.com/racing/racecards/06-06-2015/epsom-downs/racecard/667486/investec-coronation-cup-group-1

Epsom Derby - Saturday 6-6-15 @ 1130am ET

http://www.sportinglife.com/racing/racecards/06-06-2015/epsom-downs/racecard/662851/investec-derby-group-1

[OTM Al]

The real Derby. Always worth a watch.

[horses4courses]

The real Derby. Always worth a watch.

Oh, I wouldn't go that far.
There's another good one run at the Curragh at the end of the month ;)

[OTM Al]

Oh, I wouldn't go that far.
There's another good one run at the Curragh at the end of the month ;)

That is a good race as well but it is not the original Derby.

[horses4courses]

That is a good race as well but it is not the original Derby.

You're right, of course.
Run since 1780, it's the daddy of all derbies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epsom_Derby

[OTM Al]

You're right, of course.
Run since 1780, it's the daddy of all derbies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epsom_Derby

No, that would be Lord Derby, which makes Sir Bunbury that uncle no one talks about. :)

[horses4courses]

No, that would be Lord Derby, which makes Sir Bunbury that uncle no one talks about. :)

Bunbury, yes.....a fiendish cad, if ever there was one. ;)

[RXB]

Oh, I wouldn't go that far.
There's another good one run at the Curragh at the end of the month ;)

The Irish Derby is a shell of what it once was. Usually one top-class Coolmore/Tabor horse running against a bunch of second-stringers. O'Brien has trained 10 of the last 14 winners. Yawn.

[horses4courses]

The Irish Derby is a shell of what it once was. Usually one top-class Coolmore/Tabor horse running against a bunch of second-stringers. O'Brien has trained 10 of the last 14 winners. Yawn.

No doubt, it has declined recently.
Australia's romp last year at close to 1-9 odds,
against only 4 rivals, caught some bad press.

http://www.racingpost.com/news/horse-racing/appeals-for-surgery-to-classic-after-australia-rout/1682140/ID/#newsArchiveTabs=last7DaysNews

[RXB]

I prefer watching older horses, a.k.a. the best horses. Looking forward to the Prince of Wales, the Eclipse and the King George.

[horses4courses]

I prefer watching older horses, a.k.a. the best horses. Looking forward to the Prince of Wales, the Eclipse and the King George.

Naturally, four year olds and up are stronger specimens.
It's a shame that 3yo champions in Europe seldom race at 4.

[horses4courses]

I prefer watching older horses, a.k.a. the best horses. Looking forward to the Prince of Wales, the Eclipse and the King George.

The two biggest races in Europe for three year olds and up are the
Arc and the King George. 20 of the last 30 Arcs have been won by 3yo's.
13 out of the last 30 King George's have been won by 3yo's.
Only 2 of the past 10, mind you, but it's a pretty good strike rate.
Seems to go in cycles over time.

[RXB]

The two biggest races in Europe for three year olds and up are the
Arc and the King George. 20 of the last 30 Arcs have been won by 3yo's.
13 out of the last 30 King George's have been won by 3yo's.
Only 2 of the past 10, mind you, but it's a pretty good strike rate.
Seems to go in cycles over time.

3YO's get 12 pounds in weight allowance for the King George, 7 for the Arc. That type of difference is enough to change the results of a significant percentage of races, especially on turf where I believe additional weight has a bit more impact compared to dirt. I have long felt that the Euro WFA scale is patently unfair to the older runners.

And of course, as you mentioned a lot of the best talent retires after their 3YO campaigns, in no small part due to often having been credited as being the "best horse in the world" when in fact they might simply be "the best horse in the world when afforded a sizable weight allowance."

[RXB]

I need to correct slightly, it's 8 pounds weight-for-age allowance at the Arc's time of year over there, not 7. France uses the metric system so the actual difference is 7.7 lbs (3.5 kilograms).

These top fall 3YO's that supposedly need such a huge weight allowance have won 58 of 93 Arcs (62%), even though the majority of runners are 4YO-ups.

[horses4courses]

I need to correct slightly, it's 8 pounds weight-for-age allowance at the Arc's time of year over there, not 7. France uses the metric system so the actual difference is 7.7 lbs (3.5 kilograms).

These top fall 3YO's that supposedly need such a huge weight allowance have won 58 of 93 Arcs (62%), even though the majority of runners are 4YO-ups.

Then, of course, there is Treve

Right now, she's around a 3-1 chance to win the Arc this year.
If doing so, she will have taken down that big race at ages 3, 4, and 5. :eek:

[jfdinneen]

For what it is worth, not all O'Brien's winners are chalk! Today, he won the English Oaks with Qualify the 50/1 outsider catching another Irish-trained and English 1000 Guineas winner Legatissimo on the line to win by a short-head - English Oaks (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tnv9W4Z7DZk). Watch for the deep-closing, filly in the red silks with yellow markings on the sleeves, third last throughout.

John

[nearco]

For what it is worth, not all O'Brien's winners are chalk! Today, he won the English Oaks with Qualify the 50/1 outsider catching another Irish-trained and English 1000 Guineas winner Legatissimo on the line to win by a short-head - English Oaks (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tnv9W4Z7DZk). Watch for the deep-closing, filly in the red silks with yellow markings on the sleeves, third last throughout.

John

Aidan O'Brien bred the winner too. Beating his main employers short priced fav with a longshot he bred :eek: