Quote:
Originally Posted by 46zilzal
Speed is KING...No long straightaways for the pressers and sustained animals to catch up.
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I think sharper turns can also be an underrated part of speed being an advantage at the physically smaller tracks on smaller circuits.
The sharper the turn the harder it is to accelerate without bearing out. So on a small track, at the point in the race where mid pack horses and closers should normally being putting themselves in a position to win, they can't make up as much ground as they might at Belmont or even at a 9F track like AQU etc.. That leaves them with more work to do in the stretch.
You also see that on some turf courses that are inside dirt courses, though turf races develop differently so it's not nearly as big a problem for the closers.
