Quote:
Originally Posted by Spalding No!
And there's little quality in the 3yo division and whatever there was is still dwindling.
A "first ballot Hall of Famer" according to Brad Cox (cuz he's been around so many?), apparently because he's consistent enough to beat runners-up that collectively are just 2 for 25 in 2021 (adding in their 2020 records won't make it look any better)...
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I'm not going to be critical of a horse that's 8 for 9 with one terrible trip that's also still moving forward all year.
To me this is a horse with just enough speed to get himself into position to win most races and enough stamina/speed late to wear down most horses once he's in position. He's not out there trying to maximize his Beyer or winning margin. Horses like this usually have a little left in the tank. Some people get crazy and project all kinds of greatness off the win record. I'm not one of them. But if need be I think he can run a 110-112 or maybe even a tad higher in the Classic. That's not so bad in the post steroid/Lasix era of racing. The standards are changing.
IMO, someone is going to have to be a lot faster than him and get away from him turning for home to beat him. Knicks Go is fast enough, but that last furlong could be an issue, especially if anyone else with speed shows up.
I liked his race Saturday. It wasn't the strongest Travers we've even seen, but the place horse was loose in a comfortable pace on a track that at a minimum was kind to speed (if not outright biased towards it). It took quite a late kick to get the job done.
Imo, he's not a great horse (at least yet), but he's sure no bum either.
