BHA's Phil Smith - "Native River in the top 5 weight carrying performances"

[Desert Orchid]

.too bad if you have not seems to be the only answer available.

It's the handicapper's job to assess whether a horse has improved or not. A relative of mine used to argue non-stop with the local greyhound handicapper but privately would concede the handicapper was right.

The other side of the coin exists too. It's far from unusual for a handicap to be won by something the handicapper has lowered based on recent evidence but which in all probability hasn't regressed. Paul Kealy in the Weekender and RP often highlights this type.

It's all part of the puzzle and should be embraced as such rather than simply questioning the fairness of it all. As said earlier, the handicappers do have a pretty thankless task but in the big scheme of things I think they do very well.

 

[Colin Phillips]

Half a ton would be just about right for an average.