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Originally Posted by Cardus
Who cares? Apparently, the card stinks.
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You post this bulls--t and then you start this thread:
Jockey Club Gold Cup Card: Terrific.
Jockey Club Gold Cup Day, always an important day of racing, once again is a terrific card on which intelligent handicappers and passionate fans -- who have proper perspective -- can focus, enjoy, and thrive.
Since Belmont Park is in New York State, it is reasonable to begin the day with a large, state-bred race for two-year-olds -- hence, fresh faces, not retreads ( I said retreads) -- on turf, which routinely produces realistic possibilities for nice payoffs. Looking at the breeding of many entrants, you can envision a reasonably competitive race.
Two additional races by two-year-olds follow: both are Maiden Special Weight fields. Both fields -- in both theory and reality -- are suitable for a big race day. Showcasing the future is hardly disappointing on this day.
The fourth race is suspect, no doubt. At least you are handicapping a large field on the turf.
With a strong 6/5 morning line favorite, the Flower Bowl drew eight horses.
The Turf Classic is a short field. It does, however, have a 4/5 morning line choice. Among the other five horses, there are two multiple Grade One winners, a Grade One winner who is also Grade One placed, a dual Grade Two winner, and a stakes winner who is Grade One placed.
Vosburgh: Got better? Show me where.
The Kelso -- which should be on the grass, but that is for another thread -- has the Cigar Mile champ, the best 7F horse in the country on dirt currently, and the reigning two-year-old champ who ran a fantastic comeback in a Grade One last month.
Sure, the Beldame is light: Have de Grace is running in it. For the uninformed, she is a frontrunner for Horse-of-the-Year. The Grade One Alabama Stakes winner is in the field, too.
Is the Gold Cup on par with the historical standard for this grand race? No. How many races -- in this era, where, as it was pointed out, owners and trainers routinely "duck" each other -- measure up to their standards of yesteryear? How many?
Considering how little historical perspective and proper context exists in Internet Land, I am not surprised that this card rates as "disappointing" or worse.
Enjoy the day of terrific racing at Belmont Park.
