With Newbury today called-off due to waterlogging and with tomorrow's meeting likely to go the same way, Nicky Henderson has made the right decision to take Constitution Hill to Italy rather than staying local and running in the St. Simon Stakes. For all his phaffing and puffing, Nicky Henderson is usually right when it comes to tough calls and I will have my figures crossed that the adventure allows him to train what I believe will be his first winner in Italy. When I suggested the St. Simon would be the the better of the two options, it had not entered my calculations that Newbury would succumb to the weather. Their previous meeting had been run on firm ground; what a difference a few weeks can make. I will also be keeping my fingers crossed that I.T.V. might be able to add live coverage of the Premio del Jockey Club along with Aintree and Market Rasen on Sunday.
Now then, can anyone see any horse trained in Britain or Ireland that might put it up to Lossiemouth in the 2027 Champion Hurdle? In Britain, I can only suggest Golden Ace, a mare that when race-fit always runs her race. She was third yesterday at Carlisle to Wilful and Mirabad, looking like the winner until race fitness beat her. Wilful is a good horse who will win his races this season but I cannot see getting within a country mile of a fit Lossiemouth and would not expect him to finish in front of Golden Ace again this season. If there is an n in the woodpile, it might just be, if he fluffs his lines over fences, Old Park Star. You may laugh, certain in the knowledge that Nicky Henderson rarely gets the tough calls wrong, but at the top sphere of the 2-mile hurdling division there is very little in the way of competition to Lossiemouth. It is tempting, even at this very early stage of the season, to predict that Lossiemouth will retain her crown, winning with ease from Golden Ace and Wilful.
When an owner willingly pays 580,000-guineas for a horse to go hurdling, it tells you they have money to burn and held expectations that it would win first time out in what looked on paper as a fairly easy introduction. The winner, Watery Burren is held in high regard by the Russell/Scudamore partnership, and perhaps Push The Limit will improve for its first run in quite a long time. Yet how many Dan Skelton trained horses need their first run? Even though I believe it is a sign of madness to pay 580,000-guineas for a thoroughbred, any thoroughbred of any breeding, I do feel the owner's pain. Of course, it might help teach those with money to burn to hold fire when the bidding goes stratospheric for a horse with no form for the discipline you want it for. If Push The Limit is good value at 580,000 guineas, what would the market value be for Gaelic Warrior? 2-million-guineas? No, in the world horse racing it doesn't work like that.
I am not a fan of all-weather racing. That said, the synthetic surfaces we have in Britain and Ireland are a country mile better than dirt surfaces, and when snow, frost and waterlogging is causing abandonement after abandonment, the all-weather tracks are worth their weight in bronze but during the summer months especially they a mitigating factor is small field sizes at the turf racecourses. Also, the champions of the all-weather fail to get any recognition for their achievements during the cold cum bitter months of winter. I would like to propose that the all-weather season be a separate entity from the turf season, with winners on the all-weather not included for either the jockeys' or trainers' championship, and being a standalone championship.
I would like the all-weather championship to start the day after the final turf meeting of the season and conclude with the all-weather championship meeting, wherever it is now held, on the day before the flat turf season begins, which I assume will always be at the Doncaster Lincoln meeting, with a Champions Day-style presentation of all the trophies. And I mean all the trophies, trainers, jockeys, apprentice and amateur, with things like 'ride of the season', 'breakthrough jockey of the season' and awards to the owner of the most-winning horse. Make the all-weather more relevant; worthy of a day of celebration.
I would then have no further all-weather meetings for six-weeks, before a limited number of meetings through the summer and autumn months, rather like the summer jumping programme. Yes. Arc will fume and threaten all kinds or retribution. But nobody other than Arc really care about the all-weather during the summer months and it would not prevent the Northumberland Plate being run or summer festivals on the all-weather. My proposal would save on prize-money, be helpful to field sizes on the turf and cut, as everyone is agreed upon as necessary, the number of fixtures per-season.
I rest my case.