Champion Hurdle 2014

Now he's expanded on yesterday's comments.

Courtesy of the Racing Post

RUBY WALSH has expanded on comments at Cheltenham on Tuesday when it was reported he claimed racehorses were replaceable in the wake of the death of top hurdler Our Conor.

Our Conor was put down as a result of injury sustained in a fall during the Stan James Champion Hurdle in which Walsh was riding Hurricane Fly, who failed in his bid to win the race for a third time.

In comments made after the race, Ireland's champion jockey was reported to have said: "Horses are horses. You can replace a horse. It's sad, but horses are animals, outside your back door. Humans are humans. They are inside your back door.

"You can replace a horse. You can't replace a human being. That's my feeling on it," he said.

Walsh had said earlier, after victory in the first race on Vautour, that Cheltenham was not all about winning as his thoughts turned to fellow jockey JT McNamara, seriously injured at the festival a year ago, and Britain's champion jockey Tony McCoy whose six-month old son has recently undergone cardiac surgery.

Speaking on TalkSport radio on Wednesday morning, Walsh was asked to expand on those comments, and said: "We look after horses like they're pets. There's a huge difference between your pet and your family. That's the point I was making.

"There's a big difference between you going home tonight and something's happened to your dog, and you go home tonight and something's happened to one of your kids. There's a huge difference.

"We look after horses like they are pets, and that's the feeling you get when something goes wrong. At the end of the day, it's still your pet. It ain't your son, your daughter, your brother, your sister."
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Ruby is, of course, spot on.
 
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I agree with you here, Simon. I have no knowledge of owning horses, but I've had plenty pets in my time. They are not quite the same as losing a human being.

That said, when you lose a pet in tragic circumstances, in front of the eyes of the world such as Our Connor, it must be hard to bite that bullet.

I don't agree with the timing of his first comments but what he's said today makes a bit more sense.

Thoughts and condolences with Our Connor and connections.

I think it would be good for everyone concerned to move on from this particular issue.
 
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I've been devastated by the loss of my pets over the years; the main difference being that I do get over it quite quickly in a way that I wouldn't if it was a member of my family. But the actual hurt I feel at the time is pretty awful. It's only when you do get older and lose friends and family that you realise the difference. Would Ruby have been so knowledgeable about the difference years ago when he was younger and not a family man? I doubt if the girl that looked after Our Conor would agree with his comments today.
 
His comments were insensitive and crude yesterday Moe, but he is just one man.

And there's a million, a billion people out there in the world who think the same. (That humans think too much of fellow creatures and half the time not enough about ourselves?)

I don't agree with his comments or more pertinently the timing of his comments yesterday, but he has a right to say what he thinks even if that offends.
That is just a reflection of the world as it is. I'd rather he said what he thought than said things that were empty or not heartfelt as some sort of token gesture.
 
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Its to late expanding on a quote when it has come in for some contentious criticism, he should have thought about it at the time...I think he was seething a little at the disappointment of The Fly getting beat and made the comments off the cuff.

The old adage, "if you cant say anything nice don't say anything at all" has its time and place, and immediately after that race was it...
 
The front two pretty muched reproduced their Supreme efforts, Jezki profiting from having a better jockey yesterday, a more recent prep and not clattering the last this time.

TNO would have been closer if he hadn't been hampered and I suppose he must have expended some energy getting back on terms but he did that gradually and you have to think he still would have been outpaced at the same stage. He reminded me of Bob's Worth in last season's Gold Cup and IMO would only win a soft ground Champion Hurdle.
 
Euronymous said:
The front two pretty muched reproduced their Supreme efforts, Jezki profiting from having a better jockey yesterday, a more recent prep and not clattering the last this time.

TNO would have been closer if he hadn't been hampered and I suppose he must have expended some energy getting back on terms but he did that gradually and you have to think he still would have been outpaced at the same stage. He reminded me of Bob's Worth in last season's Gold Cup and IMO would only win a soft ground Champion Hurdle.
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I think MTOY needs to be ridden with a bit more confidence, holding onto a horse does consume energy, given exactly the same ride as last year...holding him up until after the last, dodging traffic....should have let him go half way down the hill, poached a 2 lengths lead going to the final flight and ride him for all he's worth up it.
 
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You simply don't win over 2m at championship pace when something like that what happened to TNO. Yes potentially you can get back in to the race, but in doing so use up valuable energy. Absolutely stunned he finished aswell off as he did in the circumstances. Absolutely no doubt in my mind that he would have beaten the 2 in front of him otherwise by a couple of lengths.
Though if MTOY could settle he would win hard held. If he couldn't settle early on yesterday, will he ever?
 
Ardross said:
Terrific race marred by the demise of Our Conor . Poor animal even in death loads of people seem determined to misspell his name.
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Being one of them being referred to. I clearly had a twitch on the 'n'.
The fact you felt the need to mention that under the circumstances - Classy :rolleyes:
 
Frankel said:
You simply don't win over 2m at championship pace when something like that what happened to TNO. Yes potentially you can get back in to the race, but in doing so use up valuable energy. Absolutely stunned he finished aswell off as he did in the circumstances. Absolutely no doubt in my mind that he would have beaten the 2 in front of him otherwise by a couple of lengths.
Though if MTOY could settle he would win hard held. If he couldn't settle early on yesterday, will he ever?
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they didn't go hard early yesterday..which wouldn't have helped MTOY..but to be fair ..off an even pace like they went he should be settling better if they want to win the top races with him

looking at the sectionals suggests to me that TNO was unlucky..he was quickening late into fast fractions..very difficult to do....will win the Aintree Hurdle for sure
 
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EC1 said:
they didn't go hard early yesterday..which wouldn't have helped MTOY..but to be fair ..off an even pace like they went he should be settling better if they want to win the top races with him

looking at the sectionals suggests to me that TNO was unlucky..he was quickening late into fast fractions..very difficult to do....will win the Aintree Hurdle for sure
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They certainly were not crawling though. I thought he showed guts aswell yesterday as he didn't go down without a fight.

Hope he does win at Aintree :cool:
 
Frankel said:
They certainly were not crawling though. I thought he showed guts aswell yesterday as he didn't go down without a fight.

Hope he does win at Aintree :cool:
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it was a perfect even pace..it just looked visually faster due to the ground..but other CH's have been run way too fast damaging the front horses..this didn't happen yesterday...particularly the lull in pace at the 6th hurdle
 
EC1 said:
it was a perfect even pace..it just looked visually faster due to the ground..but other CH's have been run way too fast damaging the front horses..this didn't happen yesterday...particularly the lull in pace at the 6th hurdle
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:thumbsup:
Which would indeed make the effort of TNO impressive.
 
If Darlan and Our Conor had both not died and able to prove themselves then a different result. Add Annie Power to the field and Un Deuex Sceaux and the first 2 home would have been 5th and 6th.
 
Le Rocher beat the 2nd home in the Triumph Hurdle easily by 10L ++ R 170 in my book . Champion Hurdle or World Hurdle.?
 
Our Conor had the beating of Jezki and Darlan was a far better animal than mtoy the stable was confident of that.Im sober today been told to . Big day in Dublin earlly start for St Paddys. Up the Irish.
 
I've had a chance to get a closer look at the form.

I'm going low with the Champion Hurdle. If RPRs were right (I assume Timeform were similar) they're a wee bit generous with Captain Cee Bee's ratings. He couldn't win either of the two big handicaps he contested in the last two years off 145 and 149. The chances are those big-field valuable handicaps were more truly run than the small field Grade 1 races in which he made the pace for Hurricane Fly so I'm going to rate the Champion Hurdle via CCB on 154 as I can't have him improving at age 13.

This puts Jezki and MTOY on 167 and The New One on 164+.

I ran the ran the recordings of this race and the Supreme in sync from when they jumped the first. They were pretty level for the next wee while before the Champion field moved a couple of lengths ahead after the fourth. The Supreme field quickened past the champion field to the bottom of the hill but from there the champion field put three or four lengths between themselves and Vautour. If Ruby got the fractions right on the latter then the Champion was not too fast early as has been suggested and there can be no criticism of the pace Danny Mullins was setting on Our Conor for as far as he got.

A rating in the low-mid 170s in my opinion makes Captain Cee Bee uncomfortably high.

That The New One was able to finish the fastest in the circumstances leads me to believe he is the best horse in the field, even though he might not have won on the day anyway, and I agree with EC1 that the Aintree race is his for the taking.

I'm very comfortable with my figure of 157 for Vautour but wouldn't be if it were in the low-mid 160s, which it would be on a direct time comparison with Jezki. As it is, of the first 12 home in the Supreme all bar Josses Hill, who ran to the same previous figure I had for him, have run better than ever before.
 
Something to consider, DO, is that Captain Cee Bee has improved because he enjoys being a frontrunner and that he is producing better performances now than in those handicaps you mention because of a change in tactics.
 
Grey said:
Something to consider, DO, is that Captain Cee Bee has improved because he enjoys being a frontrunner and that he is producing better performances now than in those handicaps you mention because of a change in tactics.
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Hmmm, but when did you last come across an improving 13yo?
 
I don't think there's anything in the physiology of a horse that mitigates against it improving at 13, it's just that most thoroughbreds start racing so/too early that by the age of 13 they have picked up various ailments and injuries that impact on the ability they can show on course. Eventers and showjumpers are often only coming into their prime at that age.

Captain Cee Bee has relatively few miles on the clock (36 races in over 8 years). He was rated 167 over fences 3 years ago so it's not outrageous to believe that he could run to 154 or more on occasion now. Doesn't necessarily mean that he's improving just that he's able to pull out a little extra from time to time.
 
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I didn't mean to suggest CCB is improving physically, merely that it turns out he likes frontrunning and it has allowed him to produce improved performances compared with those handicap runs.
 
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