Irish Flat Season 2012

  • Thread starter Thread starter SlimChance
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edgt said:
Though The Curragh is a cold place Kevin Prendergasts yard is in a sun spot. One reason possibly why his horses are often ready early in the season.
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You're right that it's a warm place but it's not why they go well early. Expect a slow start this season.
 
Bruce_Savage said:
I do remember everyone on Talking Horses saying Sing Softly run a massive time and put her up as a massive 1000 Guineas contender.

You gotta laugh some times, and you gotta know whose comments to take with a pinch of salt.
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But you only joined Talking Horses in October 2011 Bruce? :-)
 
HRI are being contacted to confirm or deny. The icey tentacles of the Irish Mafia know no bounds.
 
Minimum and standard weights have been edging up in Irish flat races in recent years in answer to findings by the Turf Club's Dr Halley that many jockeys were harming their health by having to waste too much.
 
Dr Halley's findings and a wheelbarrow load of euros sent up from Ballydoyle seem to gave swung it...
 
Win a 2yo maiden in Ireland carrying 9-5 and than be put away for the 2000 Guineas to carry 9-0. Makes perfect sense!
 
Shocking price though, if he gets more than 150 rides this season I'd be surprised.
 
Bruce_Savage said:
Shocking price though, if he gets more than 150 rides this season I'd be surprised.
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He will get at least double that and a 20% strike rate wouldn't be out of the question...
He had 57 winners from 335 rides last season - Murtagh won with 83 from 450 odd. Not as big a gap to bridge as you may think. DK Weld is well down on numbers supposedly and Murtagh is getting more involved in his yard leased to Tommy Carmody. I've backed worse 6/1 shots. His weight issues would bother me. He has the ability of that there is no doubt but one injury, even a minor one and it could be curtains. It's a fun bet that you can follow through the year.
 
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On The Bridle said:
He will get at least double that and a 20% strike rate wouldn't be out of the question...
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What yards is he attached to apart from his fathers?

With Johnny Murtagh pretty much a free agent outside John Oxx who won't have many runners then there really isn't much to find. When you consider Johnny is going to be booked for all the small owners in potential gambles in Handicap company they will add up in the end.

You have David Wachman with Wayne Lordan, and David's horses are pretty much a second string Ballydoyle which means Joseph won't be going near the yard.

At Kevin Prendergast you got the up and coming James and Hayes, then at Tommy Stack you have it pretty much open for someone like Joseph O'Brien and we know how well Stack can do early on in a season.
 
Gareth Flynn said:
That's it. The worry is he has to quit in the middle of August or something. Otherwise, he's effectively the Ballydoyle #1.
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With his weight issues could he medically be passed to do a full book of rides on one day in the searing heat of the summer?

Having to race ride when not at your natural body weight would take a tremendous amount of strain not only physically trying to ride a horse but mentally - headaches, light head, dizzy spells, sickness etc.

From the interviews I've seen, he doesn't look the type of lad that would want to go to the breaking point to be a Champion jockey.

He can ride well and has the pick of the finest blueblooded animals across the continent why would he want to push himself into anything else?

People become Champion jockey to get the position he's already in.
 
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In the UK, maybe, but in Ireland the champion jockey tends to be that because they've been riding for Coolmore. Unless Coolmore have an awful year.
 
http://www.theirishfield.ie/site/article.php?id=1616&cid=1


- The weights in two-year-old maiden races will rise by 2lb from 9st 3lb (colts)/8st 12lb (fillies) to 9st 5lb and 9st respectively. This will bring them into line with all older horse maidens. All maidens will therefore have a minimum weight of 9st.

- Colts/geldings will carry 9st 5lb rather than 9st in single sex maidens for all ages.

- The standard maximum weight in two-year-old handicaps (nurseries) will increase by 3lb to 9st 10lb which will therefore bring up all the weights in these races.

- The standard maximum weight in three-year-old only handicaps increases by 2lb from 9st 10lb to 9st 12lb (to end of June) and from 9st 12lb to 10st (from start of July).

- The lowest weight (i.e. the basic weight for fillies) will increase from 8st 12lb to 9st in conditions and black type races where the weight-for-age scale and penalty structure of the race permit, provided that this does not lead to the top weight exceeding 10st. (The HRI Programmes Committee shares the same view as the HRI Flat Pattern Committee that it would be a retrograde step to ask the best horses to carry more than 10st). This will see the weights going up in approximately 50 blacktype races and it will mean that the minimum weight is at least 9st in approximately 73 of our 113 blacktype races. (There were only nine horses which carried a weight less than 8st 9lb in black type races last year and only 14 horses which carried 8st 9lb in Group races).
 
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