Flip the Jockeys and Chrome Wins

[afleetphil]

I've never been real impressed with Victor. Too much Hollywood big shot. I would have loved to see Mike Smith on Chrome. We would probably have had a different outcome.

[stark]

I've never been real impressed with Victor. Too much Hollywood big shot. I would have loved to see Mike Smith on Chrome. We would probably have had a different outcome.

Gotta wave the BS flag on that one!

Victor is the guy that won in Dubai when his saddle was sliding off the tail of CC.
Victor is the guy that jumped out to the middle of the track and controlled the pace etc etc etc

This is one of the best races CHROME has ever run and he came up just short, not the jockey's fault, it's what they call horse racing and today ARROGATE won.

[Dusty]

Gotta wave the BS flag on that one!

Victor is the guy that won in Dubai when his saddle was sliding off the tail of CC.
Victor is the guy that jumped out to the middle of the track and controlled the pace etc etc etc

This is one of the best races CHROME has ever run and he came up just short, not the jockey's fault, it's what they call horse racing and today ARROGATE won.

AGREED

[peeptoad]

I've never been real impressed with Victor. Too much Hollywood big shot. I would have loved to see Mike Smith on Chrome. We would probably have had a different outcome.

I..... no. I don't agree with this at all. Chrome got beat by a better horse yesterday. End of story.

[stark]

I've never been real impressed with Victor. Too much Hollywood big shot. I would have loved to see Mike Smith on Chrome. We would probably have had a different outcome.

Last add if I may, trying to paint a picture of Victor Espinoza a little better, not just the ride on what Andy Beyer has now called a career best speed rating of 119, but the Hollywood big shot stuff you referenced, consider this.....It got quite a bit of publicity at the time and is easy enough to research that he donated 100% or $80,000 for his American Pharaoh Triple Crown win to the CITY OF HOPE, a cancer research hospital that Victor aims for curing the kids!  (Baffert also donated his share to a couple of different charities)

But it doesn't end there......every year jockeys across the nation have their special fundraising days when they donate 10% of that days earnings to a designated charity like PDJF and that's great.  But Victor gives 10% every day, every win all year long to the same City of Hope, doing his part trying to cure cancer for kids.

We need more Victors in sports imho.

[Diver52]

Victor deserves the praise he doesn't seek for his charitable contributions--but I'd like to have seen him work out a stalking trip and then turn it on.  CC hasn't always been a front runner.  But frankly, I don't think it would have mattered.  Arrogate is just too good.

[Senator L]

I think the main reason Arrogate won was the distance. It would be interesting
to see them match up at GP at a 1 1/8th

[Man o Taz]

Well, I for one have to agree that Victor did not ride the best race and Art Sherman tends to agree.

First, the plan was to stalk the pace and Victor goes to the lead. If you look at the way Victor warmed up the horse and the comments Sherman made before the race this seemed the plan. Melatonin would have liked to have taken the lead which would have allowed Chrome to relax off the pace. Instead, being on the lead there was a strong likelihood that he would expend more energy than he had following the pace.

Second, the pace was a little fast. It was not excessively fast, but the first quarter was quick. Instead of going 48 the half was closer to 47. Instead of going 1:12 it was closer to 1:11. That lost second would come back to bite Chrome.

Third, coming into the stretch, as noted by Art Sherman, one would think that if you were on the lead you would try and increase your margin. Especially, since California Chrome had a reputation for increasing his lead in the second turn to create an unbeatable margin in the stretch. The distance between horses from the third call to the stretch run remained unchanged as if Victor was waiting for someone to close and pass him.

Finally, the rail was known to be dead all day, and yet Victor found himself not in the middle of the track when he was fighting off Arrogate, but closer to the rail. 

I have a great amount of respect for Victor Espinoza and as noted, much of the credit for Chrome's wins are due to his professionalism and talent. But I think in this race he was too concerned with what the other horses were doing the way he kept looking back to see what was happening behind him.

The fact that Chrome performed well should not distract from the possibility that he may have performed better. Just my opinion.

[afleetphil]

Why is the rail dead so often. What makes it that way.

[stark]

One way of measuring a horse's performance is by their speed ratings, the Beyer's being the most popular benchmark, CHROME RAN HIS BEST RACE EVER, how much better do you really expect/want it to be?

I seem to recall a couple of races where the pace was undecided prior to opening the gates, and one in particular where CHROME was mired down on the rail, and what did Victor do........he assumed command and jumped out into the 4 or 5 path shocking everybody for the merry-go-round race.  How many armchair critics would have suggested ahead of time, I hope Victor goes wide from the rail once he gets the lead, LOL.

Criticizing jockeys is no stranger to this game, but when a horse runs his heart out, when he bests his all-time performance, I think the sensible thing to say after the race is we got beat today.  It's not necessary in this situation to blame anybody for defeat.  Mike Smith blames himself for losing on Zenyatta, not necessary.  Trainer X says I ran a short horse today, yep, gotta accept some blame there. 

imho.

[curtis]

Well, I for one have to agree that Victor did not ride the best race and Art Sherman tends to agree.

First, the plan was to stalk the pace and Victor goes to the lead. If you look at the way Victor warmed up the horse and the comments Sherman made before the race this seemed the plan. Melatonin would have liked to have taken the lead which would have allowed Chrome to relax off the pace. Instead, being on the lead there was a strong likelihood that he would expend more energy than he had following the pace.

Second, the pace was a little fast. It was not excessively fast, but the first quarter was quick. Instead of going 48 the half was closer to 47. Instead of going 1:12 it was closer to 1:11. That lost second would come back to bite Chrome.

Third, coming into the stretch, as noted by Art Sherman, one would think that if you were on the lead you would try and increase your margin. Especially, since California Chrome had a reputation for increasing his lead in the second turn to create an unbeatable margin in the stretch. The distance between horses from the third call to the stretch run remained unchanged as if Victor was waiting for someone to close and pass him.

Finally, the rail was known to be dead all day, and yet Victor found himself not in the middle of the track when he was fighting off Arrogate, but closer to the rail. 

I have a great amount of respect for Victor Espinoza and as noted, much of the credit for Chrome's wins are due to his professionalism and talent. But I think in this race he was too concerned with what the other horses were doing the way he kept looking back to see what was happening behind him.

The fact that Chrome performed well should not distract from the possibility that he may have performed better. Just my opinion.

All that and the best he was able to produce was a 119 BSF and beat the rest of the field by almost 11 lengths. Victor should be drawn an quartered.

Victor has been praised and lauded on this forum for his heady rides in both the Pacific Classic and the Awesome Again, both instances in which he took the early lead. What have you done for me lately.  Short of Baffert switching to Ronnie Franklin, none of it would have really mattered, the best horse won.  Chrome should have got him before Arrogate really figures out what he's doing.

[curtis]

Why is the rail dead so often. What makes it that way.

The favorite losing while running near it. It's in the Horse Racing Excuse Thesaurus right next to Cuppy Track.😉

[stark]

Last add re: Sherman's post race comments, if he would've liked to see Victor open up 3 or 4 lengths at the top of the stretch, he should have told him before the race, I'll guess that Victor would try and comply with trainer's instructions.

But the truth is, in the saddling area where handshakes and well wishes are exchanged with the connections, nary a word of instruction was uttered as is customary in most stakes races.  Traditionally the trainer says "I didn't need to tell the boy anything, he knows the horse and we'll see how the race unfolds"

Same thing should've been said AFTER the race by what is normally a very classy old trainer.

[stark]

Why is the rail dead so often. What makes it that way.

You need to be on the inside to know what the track maintenance crew does.  But think about it as you watch the steam rollers, harrowing devices, watering trucks go round 'n round.  Sometimes they roll over the inside an extra time or two making it an almost sealed rock hard type of service, while other times they push extra dirt down there from the highpoint on the course, making it deeper and slower than the rest of the track.

Your job, if you decide to accept it as a handicapper, is to identify the bias asap after a race or two, then wager accordingly.

[Man o Taz]

All that and the best he was able to produce was a 119 BSF and beat the rest of the field by almost 11 lengths. Victor should be drawn an quartered.

Victor has been praised and lauded on this forum for his heady rides in both the Pacific Classic and the Awesome Again, both instances in which he took the early lead. What have you done for me lately.  Short of Baffert switching to Ronnie Franklin, none of it would have really mattered, the best horse won.  Chrome should have got him before Arrogate really figures out what he's doing.

There is no doubt that Chrome performed very well in the race.

The question is whether Victor did anything different in this ride than he had in past rides, and whether that compromised Chrome's chances of winning at all. I think he did and it did. You obviously have a different opinion. Sherman said the plan was to take back and not set the pace. And Chrome is most comfortable off the pace.

And I do agree, this was the race for Chrome to beat Arrogate. The next one will not be so easy, if this one was easy at all.