Gold Cup (Ascot)

Hamm said:
He noticeably thanked Mr and Mrs of the Hays, Magniers, Tabors and Smiths. They then asked him how great it was to ride for AOB - Spencer replied with a huge smile, 'well, we probably get on a lot better than we did back then!'. O'Brien was smiling but he looked uncomfortable. Very funny.
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Thanks:)
 
From Aidan O'Brien's post race press conference (as reported by Dave Ord on the Sportinglife.com blog):

Of former stable jockey Jamie Spencer he added: "He was a very young man when he came over from England and it's a real pressure-cooker at Ballydoyle. I have to admit - and you all probably know - I can be very intense at times and I don't blame him for running away from me! However he's always been a great rider."
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thought AOB showed a very human side and gave him a friendly tap .

Well done Steve Duncan was the non-stayer.

Great to see Coolmore putting proper Group Obe horses in the Gold Cup as it used to be !
 
Quite surprised by some of the plaudits heaped of Fame And Glory today. All he did was show he can stay 2 1/2 miles. Whilst that's no mean achievemnt, we already knew he was at the very least, 3l better than Opinion Poll et al.

Glad he won, for obvious reasons, but the form he showed today isn't as good as that he was showing as a 3-y-o when everyone was slagging gim off saying he's overrated. Funny game this at times.
 
davidjohnson said:
Quite surprised by some of the plaudits heaped of Fame And Glory today. All he did was show he can stay 2 1/2 miles. Whilst that's no mean achievemnt, we already knew he was at the very least, 3l better than Opinion Poll et al.

Glad he won, for obvious reasons, but the form he showed today isn't as good as that he was showing as a 3-y-o when everyone was slagging gim off saying he's overrated. Funny game this at times.
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It's funny all the time for those of us who can't understand it as well you clearly can!!!:D

I was surprised how tamely Holberg folded. Tastahil? Geordieland? The way the latter folded reminded me of Istabraq in his last Champion Hurdle. Hope they're all o.k.
 
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davidjohnson said:
Quite surprised by some of the plaudits heaped of Fame And Glory today. All he did was show he can stay 2 1/2 miles. Whilst that's no mean achievemnt, we already knew he was at the very least, 3l better than Opinion Poll et al.

Glad he won, for obvious reasons, but the form he showed today isn't as good as that he was showing as a 3-y-o when everyone was slagging gim off saying he's overrated. Funny game this at times.
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Totally agree with that.
 
davidjohnson said:
Quite surprised by some of the plaudits heaped of Fame And Glory today. All he did was show he can stay 2 1/2 miles. Whilst that's no mean achievemnt, we already knew he was at the very least, 3l better than Opinion Poll et al.

Glad he won, for obvious reasons, but the form he showed today isn't as good as that he was showing as a 3-y-o when everyone was slagging gim off saying he's overrated. Funny game this at times.
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i think you are missing the point..he's got the plaudits for staying 2.5 miles on slow ground..winning the Ascot Gold Cup...something he will be remembered more for than finishing 2nd in other races

he was overhyped as a 3yo..there is no doubt about that..imo..but thats expected from his camp..its their trademark:)
 
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jinnyj said:
Geordieland looked like he might have bled?
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ATR reporting he did bleed. Retirement beckons I hope.

F & G had one problem as a three year old - Sea The Stars . The other was that he was puffed up as being unlucky in the Derby - proved to be nonsense .

He was always a very good horse and he won much more comprehensively today than in his earlier runs this year - just a shame Rite of Passage could not defend his crown .
 
F & G had one problem as a three year old - Sea The Stars .
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Precisely. As John Magnier said on ATR today, Fame And Glory would now be at stud as a Derby-winning sire were it not for Sea The Stars.
 
Could say the same about Terimon and Dragons Dancer....

Bit unfair maybe
 
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It's not so daft when everyone agrees that STS was exceptional. Anyway, the point of Magnier's was not to bemoan his luck, more to say that today would never have happened if Fame And Glory had landed those other races rather been runner up.
 
clivex said:
Could say the same about Terimon and Dragons Dancer....

Bit unfair maybe
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EC1 said:
a bit daft yes..its like saying X who finished 4th would have been a Derby winner if other 3 hadn't run

silly logic imo
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Dragon's Dancer would have been the worst Derby winner ever. And without Nashwan that Derby would have had more runners and Terimon wouldn't have won it. Fame would have gone down as a well above average winner.
 
[FONT=&quot]Fine horse, very classy and won like a good favourite should... stamina has always been a strength rather than a weakness for him... a true odds-on shot at an odds-against price.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Huge return from him with the bonus of Opinion Poll for the place. I was cocky enough to do the forecast for proper stake too. One of those days when not too much was ever going to go wrong. Very satisfying to see him dominate this.
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[FONT=&quot]He looked wonderful today. He’s now won Group 1s at two, three, four and five. Not too shabby eh?;)
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Great stuff OTB... an emotional day!... Hope you noticed only two in the field had Shirley Heights as dam sire – the winner and the runner up.

Looks like the inclusion Shirley Heights in the Dosage system as a stamina influence – Classic/Professional chef-de-race was the right move.
 
Ardross said:
ATR reporting he did bleed. Retirement beckons I hope.

He was always a very good horse and he won much more comprehensively today than in his earlier runs this year - just a shame Rite of Passage could not defend his crown .
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Might be a blessing in disguise for Rite Of Passage as the ground would not have suited him on Thursday. Hopefully we will see him in the Goodwood Cup and other Cup races coming up and maybe even the Melbourne Cup.
 
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