The 2000 Guineas (and beyond)

I don't care about Godolphin in this instance however, I'm sure they'd let the public know if one of their major hopes had an injury. This Steinbeck injury has been doing the rounds for weeks now and I presumed it was bollocks as there was no drift but it's surely no coincidence that it's suddenly been announced today.

O'Brien should do better; his peers certainly would alert us to any injuries. Look at Noseda, who I'm no huge fan of, already ruled Leahurst out of the season. There is no way AOB would do that with any of his string at this stage of the campaign.

Bolger has put plenty of noses out of joint with worse tricks than this over classic campaigns and O'Brien should know better. His greatness and record in the race don't excuse not performing a duty to the public in his position.
 
Much of the speculation has been about weither Steinbeck would take on SNA - rumours can easily surface from those sort guessing games.

If it was something serious Betfair would have reflected it - it nearly always does - but clearly that was a chance he could recover (and again he still could) perhaps similar to Rip Van Winkle last year. Or perhaps he simply did have a set back in the last couple of weeks - like I said already he has the profile of a horse that is not easy to train.

Gamla Stan said:
I don't care about Godolphin in this instance however, I'm sure they'd let the public know if one of their major hopes had an injury. This Steinbeck injury has been doing the rounds for weeks now and I presumed it was bollocks as there was no drift but it's surely no coincidence that it's suddenly been announced today.

O'Brien should do better; his peers certainly would alert us to any injuries. Look at Noseda, who I'm no huge fan of, already ruled Leahurst out of the season. There is no way AOB would do that with any of his string at this stage of the campaign.

Bolger has put plenty of noses out of joint with worse tricks than this over classic campaigns and O'Brien should know better. His greatness and record in the race don't excuse not performing a duty to the public in his position.
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A) There was no injury until the one announced today.

B) There was an injury a few weeks ago which wasn't expected to affect his Guineas participation. This injury has now re-occurred or the horse has suffered an entirely new injury. Either way, only now is it expected to affect his Guineas participation.

C) The horse has been injured the whole time.

Which of these is the most likely?

From the Betfair activity - a drift a few weeks ago, followed by a contraction, followed by a drift today - I'll go for option B.
 
That's probably a fair call Gareth, it just leaves a sour taste when you've heard from various people within the industry that all was not well with him and it's taken three weeks to emerge but you're probably closest to the truth with B.
 
There's a Godolphin stable tour in the RP on Thursday which may make for interesting reading. Are the bulk of their horses still in Dubai or are they back over here yet?
 
Didn't he look pleased with himself? Tail up and looking very alert in the paddock, but calm and focused on the course. Good to see that some coats are coming on well already - his certainly is.
 
Just back in - really good to see them in the flesh - I thought Fencing Master, Fame And Glory and in particular St Nicholas Abbey all did very well physically over the winter. St Nic was never that imposing last year but looks to have developed very nicely over the winter. Have a few pics to put up shortly.
 
I was wondering if he had bulked up or was just, well, that :lol:

Alfred Nobel galloped nicely, for whatever that's worth.
 
St Nicholas Abbey -

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Fencing Master looks like a bull. Will he really be a miler, and is there any chance he will be 100% spot on the day of the guineas - seems unlikely. I wonder would he be the type for the Eclipse.
 
Songsheet said:
Yes, thanks Gal - SNA doesn't look particularly robust, does he, compared to FENCING MASTER.
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Certainly not - but I (and a few others there) were pretty surprised to see how well St Nic had done. Definitely progressed along the right lines physically - I would say he did get a little worked up in the parade ring but that might just have been freshness.

I love Fencing Master - type to do extremely well this season.
 
Plenty in Fencing Master's pedigree to suggest that 10f will be his trip sooner or later. His dam won the Prix Saint-Alary and his half sister (by Peintre Celebre) was second in the French Oaks.

It's obviously too early to say what Oratorio is adding to the mix, but clearly he was a 10f animal and you would ideally have expected him to get Dewhurst-contending 2yos, which is exactly what he did.
 
The jockey was pushing from a long way out in the Dewhurst, whether it was an inability to go the early pace or the lack of cover he got I dunno, but I reckon he'll get 12f and i've taken 25s for the Derby.
 
Do not think he will get 12 furlongs or enjoy Epsom at all.

I suspect he will just be the type to need alot of pushing and shoving from a mile to 10 furlongs. Think it was interesting that they were keen to get SNA and FM to actually win their gallop or go very close to winning it say in comparison to last year when MCM and RIP were asked nothing. Guessing they are alot more forward this year.
 
I can't ever remember a 2000Guineas with absolutely nothing worth backing. The oppo to AOB being sprinters and something trained by Meehan.
 
Still plenty of time for something completely unexposed to come out of the woodwork in the Craven or elsewhere.
 
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