The Good, The Bad and The Ugly – August 29th Edition

A racing icon passed away, a star mare was forced to retire while a big boy scored a big win. All that and more in this weeks edition of ‘The Good, The Bad and The Ugly’.

KEY NEWS:

RIP Subzero

One of the great ambassadors for racing in Australia, 1992 Melbourne Cup winner Subzero, succumbed to heart failure and was humanely put down on Saturday. It comes after his great mate, Graham Salisbury, passed a month earlier to the day. At the age of 32, the grey had been a wonderful ambassador, whether it been visiting hospitals, schools, retirement homes and so on. Rest easy champion.

Loving Gaby Retired

Multiple Group l winning mare Loving Gaby was retired earlier this week. The four year old was found to have had inflammation in a near-fore limb and given what was ahead of her post racing, the decision was made to retire her. The mare won both the Manikato and William Reid, showing a love for the Valley, along with a host of other strong efforts.

Behemoth Brilliant In Memsie

Behemoth was near the top of the tree when it came to ‘Group l winner in waiting’, but that all changed in the Memsie Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday with the four year old showing some real class and dominance in taking out the Group l. Aided by a lovely steer from Craig Williams, the gelding landed the box seat and once he sat that close in the run, it was race over.

PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK:

How can you go past Anders in the San Domenico? Yes, he was race fit and at a sprint trip whereas the rest were either first up/outclassed, but he broke the race record and gave the track record a nudge too, showcasing just how dominant he was. Talk straight away was Everest. Eyeballing Nature Strip? No thanks. Plenty of options for him, whether it be the Moir, Manikato, or more ideally, the Coolmore Stud.

DEBUT OF THE WEEK:

Smokin Val at Murray Bridge on Wednesday…where did that come from? Jumpouts were just fair, but gee the change up speed she produced was sparkling and she smashed the clock, running 57.3 for the 1000m, which is one of the quicker times for the 1000m at that track for a little while. She can come to town and win.

RIDE OF THE WEEK:

Watch a replay of the last at Mackay and the steer from Justin Stanley aboard Brad. Eased back to last and went straight to the fence, where he immediately got in front of several, sliced his way through the field, got the split and dashed late to win. Looked a tricky race for him from the gate, but the ride was a beauty.

SLAUGHTER OF THE WEEK:

Was on Persan, so no complaints, but fair dinkum. Mick Dee and John Allen. Only way that Persan was going to get beat was if it was a truly run 2400m, but it was pretty much a 600m dash for dash, which was clearly going to suit Persan, and he was too good. Just put tempo into the race and not run at barrier trial speed.

HORSES TO FOLLOW:

Vegas Jewel – Lovely first up run for new stable
Anders – Group l winner in waiting. Not Everest
Mugatoo – He’s a beauty
Windstorm – Lovely run. Good for further next time
Cascadian – He’s ready

ONE MORE CHANCE:

Korcho – Given no hope with the ride. Forgive
Doubtland – Don’t sack him off that
Overlord – Barrier manners need to improve
Superstorm – Want to see him again
Regal Power – Needs a step up in trip and more fitness

NEVER EVER AGAIN:

Sangria – She’s just no good
Trope – Retire him or send him elsewhere
Bob Peters Runners In WA – Batting at 1/11 since Pike went to Melbourne