Classic City

re: Classic City

jayjay — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 07:55:11 GMT

Did anyone see that workout video by Blame ?? I'm going on the record that this horse is peaking at exactly the right time for the Classic. It wouldn't surprise me if he loses the JCGC as I don't think they will go all out to win that race. They will have him at tip top shape for the Classic, and he's really the one that would make me lose that bet to Jason...I hope they decide to retire him before the Classic lol.

re: Classic City

jayjay — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 07:28:46 GMT

Mike Relva : It's funny how those "fans" true colors comes out when the horse they've been glorifying all year doesn't perform to their expectations. At least Draynay is consistent with his bashing of Zenyatta and he doesn't pretend to like her or her team unlike some other bloggers :) I do know that when Zenyatta wins, Draynay will leave the dark side and join the millions of Zen fans. Zenyatta beats the boys on dirt, their hometrack (east coast) and does it easily :) What more can Draynay ask for ?? I won't be surprise if after the Classic, someone spots Draynay at GP next year wearing a pink dress and teal colored heels. LOL

re: Classic City

Mike Relva — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 23:34:47 GMT

JAYJAY

I agree,LIVESOUTHWEST isn't a true fan,he's like DRAYNAY zero loyality to any horse.

re: Classic City

Mike Relva — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 21:25:47 GMT

LIVESOUTHWEST

Guess you won't be rooting for RA since she's retired. Should be an example that shows over and over how people's expections in racing can crumble in a split second.

re: Classic City

Nancy — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 20:27:26 GMT

Jason,

I'm late to the blog 'party". Thank you for video of Espoir City and the candid interview with

Yokoyama San. He was very forthright and that is very refreshing in today's world. I agree with his sentiment about Casino Drive - he would have been a force to run against. I saw him in the paddock at Belmont for the Peter Pan and then he won it. There was no question in my mind when I had my first look at him that he would win, not only that race, but whatever else he was entered in. It is a shame he had such bad luck with physical issues. I believe he is retired to stud. He had the look of Eagles and was a very handsome horse who exhibited exuberance. I I think it is great that so many international racing stars - Japanese and European are interested in running here in various Breeder's Cup Races again this year. Good publicity which racing badly needs.

However for the Classic, my heart and prayers belong to Zenyatta the Queen of the turf! Next in order is Quality Road, Lookin at Lucky and Blame. Hopefully she will win, but win or lose I want them all home in one piece and sound.

re: Classic City

jayjay — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 17:02:25 GMT

LOW : One more thing to add, championships doesn't mean you worked hard for it. There are many many teams that buy championships by buying the players. Oakland As are known for putting together a championship caliber team without spending hundreds of millions. I'm not from Oakland and I don't root for the As, I'm a Giants fan through and through. I still don't get your point on mentioning basketball though...was it just to attack me because I live in a small town and you live in LA? If so, I'm crying over here, it really hurt...

Your flip flopping is really getting tiring, IMO, you're not a fan of the horse, you're a fan of whoever wins. When Rachel wasn't winning, you jumped on the QR wagon. And now...you're on Zenyatta because QR lost the Whitney. I'm sure you'll jump on Blame's wagon next if he wins the JCGC. I almost called you Draynay...funny that.

re: Classic City

Mike Relva — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 17:25:38 GMT

LIVESOUTHWEST

JAYJAY isn't a "sore loser". Question? Would you ever admit here it's almost Oct and RA still hasn't won a Grade 1? Right.

re: Classic City

Aluminaut — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 06:02:10 GMT

jayjay,

If you want a good look at Zenyatta and don't mind that she'll be walking fast, walk north past the saddling area along the horse-walk path until you can't go any further. You'll see all the horses enter, usually in numerical order. You can take pictures, then follow them to the paddock which will be packed. Zenyatta will walk by just a couple feet away from you with John S. following close-by.

re: Classic City

ruffianruns — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 05:45:03 GMT

jayjay - Please go read my last post on Steve's Slew blog. It's about HP next weekend.

re: Classic City

Mike Relva — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 01:38:26 GMT

LIVESOUTHWEST

That's your choice.

re: Classic City

Slew — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 20:38:33 GMT

I like Blame...but...you say he won 5 straight....guess who won 18 straight.

re: Classic City

SPLITS OF 12 — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 17:44:04 GMT

I have a strange feeling come BC Classic time, Zenyatta is going to get disrespected at the window and go off at 6-1. The question will be, should I bet her or Blame? I can see a scenario where the speed melts down, and Zenyatta takes the lead in deep stretch, and then eases up a bit. She sometimes does this when she thinks she's already won the race. Thats' where a horse like Blame, who style is to keep on running, could possibly run by her in the last 100 yards, without Zenyatta even knowing what just happened. Blame is a horse who digs into the ground and motors home fast. He's a fierce competitor who can handle a fast or wet track. It's Claiborne Farms 100th Anniversary, and it just so happens they have a horse whose won five straight races. In this years BC Classic, I believe, Blame is the horse to beat.

re: Classic City

Livesoutwest — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 05:44:49 GMT

Actually jayjay, neither of us may be wrong this year. You say all Team Z cares about is back to back Classic wins. I say they desperately want HOY. Well this year, if they get one, they'll get the other. All your talk about an eastern bias is nonsense. Rachel Alexandra won last year because she ran a better campaign and you're still a sore loser over it and blaming some mythical bias despite your never-ending claims that you have nothing against Rachel. Meanwhile, I'm on the east coast today with a possible chance to finally see Rachel live if she goes in the Beldame. Nevertheless, I'm flying back to LA to make sure I don't miss Zenyatta.

The HOY award is the recognized championship of horseracing, whether YOU like it or not. I'm from LA, the city of champions where Kobe Bryant has five rings and Phil Jackson has 11. LeBron who? And hopefully Zenyatta joins the list of LA champions this year, no thanks to her dead weight connections. Nobody is asking for Zenyatta to run in all those races you mentioned - how about just one? You don't appreciate the significance of championships, jayjay. Maybe because you live in some town where they haven't won one in eons?

re: Classic City

Livesoutwest — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 05:44:40 GMT

re: Classic City

jayjay — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 03:40:17 GMT

Will : Yes, I read about that tragic accident. My thoughts are with his family. Thanks for posting that.

Dr. D / Zookeeper : Any tips on where to hang out at HP to get me good access to Zen ? You guys know anyone at the track I can bribe to get up close to the Queen ? I'm only staying for a day, unless I hit the pick 6, then i'll be sick for a week stuck in LA ;)

re: Classic City

jayjay — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 03:30:54 GMT

LOW : For a Zen fan, you seem to miss a lot of things about Team Z. After the AB, they said they're going back to the Classic, they have never mentioned the Ladies Classic or any other race as their goal. I don't even know how you can mention about her running in the BCLC. Also, if you think their goal is the HOTY, why would they go the same route they did last year when they know it would never work with the east coast bias (even though it worked for Azeri.) The same route WORKED WELL for the Classic (hint hint.)

RA is running in the Ladies Classic, Zenyatta with the big boys, get it ? Check out the odds link that Jason posted, and see if you can find Zenyatta in the LC lineup. You keep trying to find something to complain about, it's 6 weeks away and you're still complaining. How about you just let her run her next race and then watch her win the Classic. :) You also don't have a vote in the HOTY btw, so I don't know why you're so "hyper" about that award. I don't care about the HOTY, what would be really thrilling for ME is for her to defeat the big boys ON THEIR TURF in the BIGGEST race of the year (and have an awesome ending to her career as a racehorse.) If you think HOTY can compare to that thrill, well then...to each their own.

I'm glad Householder got it, I've said all along that if your goal is the Classic you'll have to take the easy route. You can't run your horse to the ground before September. Imagine if Zen ran in the Vanity, then the HGC and then the Woodward and then the JCGC, what do you think will be left of her for the Classic ?? Those are great races to win and will probably get her HOTY even without the Classic but again, here's the question :

HOTY (2010) or Back 2 Back Classic winner against a tough male fields ?

Which one do you think will be talked about 10 years from now ?

re: Classic City

Livesoutwest — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 22:11:01 GMT

Householder,

True, one of the strikes against Zenyatta last year was too light a schedule (five races) in addition to too weak a schedule. Quality Road figures to have just as light a schedule this year as does Blame. And yet, because there is no monster Rachel Alexandra-like campaign to compete against, any of the three who wins the Classic is almost guaranteed to be HOY this year.

Jerry Hollendorfer doesn't want to take on Zenyatta with Blind Luck in the Lady's Secret, and who can blame him. But what I think he should do is run her in the Goodwood against a group of males who are all inferior to Zenyatta. If she wins that, she now has an HOY-worthy campaign and would be poised to take the award if the Big Three plus Lookin At Lucky falter.

Mike R,

Yeah, I believe they will run Zenyatta in the Classic and not the Ladies Classic. And I will root for Zenyatta in the Classic just like last year. But I'm going on record saying I also plan to root for Rachel Alexandra in the Ladies Classic. And if they run Zenyatta in that race, I'll be rooting against her for the first time.

re: Classic City

LAZMANNICK — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 22:05:37 GMT

Livesoutwest

At no time, I'll state that again.....at no time have the Moss'es ever been worried about Rachel at any distance from 1 1/16M and up. In her hayday Rachel might have won the one-turn Mother Goose in 1.46.33 against a nothing field, but Zen ran a two-turn BC Distaff in 1.46.85 againsyt a real field. At 1 1/16M Rachel's best is 1.42.4. Zen has run faster than that seven times and has run 1.40 and change three times. If you think they brought her back this year to run in teh Distaff I don't think so. It's obvious that the target is the BCC and it is also believable that defeting males two years running in the BCC might be worth more to them than HOY.

re: Classic City

Householder — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 17:32:02 GMT

QR has ran like 4 times this year. Granted they were all spectacular. But is this not the same argument we used against Zenyatta last year as well as currently (light schedule?) I personally have no problem with it as it is the trainer knowing what is best for the horse. I think Whittingham brought 3 year old Sunday Silence to the Breeder's Cup off works after stopping in the lane during the early summer Swaps stakes. It paid off in both respects...Classic win (HOY). Both Zenyatta's and QR's trainer know what it takes to get a horse to win come that big weekend in November. It's going to be a great show down.

re: Classic City

Householder — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 17:17:48 GMT

Livesouthwest

Like I said no disrespect to Musket Man. I have loved this horse since he was Jason's "Long Shot" pick of the Kentucky Derby. I had him in my super.

Love under valued "blue collar" types who don't make their researve at sales coming out and dancing toe to toe with better bred costly colts. No one has told MM he can't run this far! I would not fall out of my seat if he won the Classic and would be upset had I not played him.

Look what they paid for Blind Luck...she should be running at the county fair!

If Quality Road wins the Classic I have no problem saying he is HOY but the scenario your describing is the "Curlin" scenario and I think his Dubai score against an up and coming Well Armed (who won the Dubai race the following year) excused his poor performance in the BC Classic and it became his "mulligan". I would argue that QR does not have this. But it is an interesting thought. Who wins HOY with Zenyatta, Blame, and QR finishing off the board?

re: Classic City

Mike Relva — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 13:21:09 GMT

LIVESOUTHWEST

Zenyatta WILL NOT run in the Ladies Classic. This has been said like a million times about the schedule she ran this year. I GOT IT!

re: Classic City

ruffianruns — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 04:35:20 GMT

Dr D - I think the book was older than the 50's, but I don't know for sure. I can't find it. Do you have back problems? I'm sorry. We have too much in common! Oh - today I was driving home and I saw the word FUN on a billboard or on a truck or something. Maybe it was just the suggestion of the word FUN. My first thought: Dr D and I can get a horse and name it FunFlatOut! My apologies to Zookeeper.

Zookeeper - Thanks for the update. I was imagining him at the ranch all this week. I'm thinking of him.

Hang in there berttheclock.

Thanks, Will.

I'm bummed about Afleet Express and do you think Presious needed the race?

re: Classic City

Zookeeper — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 03:40:12 GMT

Dr. D., Slew, jayjay,

Thank you. I'll relay the message. lol!

re: Classic City

Livesoutwest — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 03:34:00 GMT

Maybe YOU don't care about HOY, JayJay, but you hardly speak for all Zen fans. Many of her fans are disappointed that Z hasn't taken on the likes of QR, Blame or MM even one time. Hopefully she'll finally take them on in the Classic, but considering the utterly unambitious campaign her connections have run this year, taking the easy road yet again in the Ladies Classic would be no surprise. Maybe they feel with no Rachel Alexandras to surpass, they can take the big trophy simply by continuing to crush cheesepuffs.

But I have no doubt that this year, Moss wants that HOY trophy bad enough to cut off his left pinky for it, or maybe even an appendage a bit lower, LOL!

re: Classic City

jayjay — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 01:25:41 GMT

LOW : I think you missed my point about MM and the MARES that Zenyatta beat this year. I was being sarcastic in that MM would never ever race those mares. I don't even know how you can argue a male horse beating a bunch of mares. I think that only happens in harness racing. If I ask you to give me a scenario where MM can beat the mares Z beat, what would you say ? lol

Finally, you can argue with yourself about HOTY. I don't know how many times I have to tell you lol. If Team Z wants it, fine, I believe they don't. Zen's fans don't need it, we're quite happy where she is, what she's done and whatever she does in the Classic.

Zookeeper : Thank you for the news on RunFlatOut. Wishing him "speedy" recovery.