True Racing: An Unbiased Opinion
Sydney Morning Herald
Friday May 1, 1998
ANOTHER Sydney autumn racing fes tival has been successfully com pleted and the carnival of caravans heads interstate. Two words were absent throughout the just-completed seven-week horse extravaganza and they weren't missed.
"Track bias" never reared its ugly head. They are words feared by punters, owners, trainers, jockeys and racing officials. Not hearing those two despised words when going to the races, or on radio and TV, or seeing them in print was most refreshing.
Instead, we were left to talk about racehorses and the characters involved with their well-being. Horses of all ages, gathered from all parts, did battle on the track and made for quality reading, listening and viewing.
And maybe, just maybe, we've found an answer to this unwanted track bias malaise. It has been debated before but the fact is hard racing takes its toll on a racetrack. That goes for them all.
Randwick racecourse, once described as the best in the country, returned to some sort of normality. When I bade farewell to Randwick on Boxing Day the track had become a nightmare. The once-lauded surface had more speed humps than found in a shopping centre carpark.
Those in power closed it down. Nine weeks without racing did wonders. Of course, remedial work was carried out on the track which had the desired result. The AJC's track manager, John Jeffs, told me had drainage work not been conducted on the turn out of the straight the Doncaster-Derby meeting would not have gone ahead.
Remember Good Friday and the cyclonic conditions that descended upon Sydney? Randwick racecourse was deluged. Officials had planned to run Saturday's Doncaster-Derby meeting on the Sunday. The meeting went ahead and bias didn't enter the equation. Four meetings followed in the space of 14 days and those unsavoury words weren't sighted. Racing conducted at its best.
And that goes for the STC's Golden Slipper carnival conducted over four consecutive Saturdays. Rosehill had 20 days' respite before the Canterbury Guineas meeting opened the festival.
Make no mistake, track bias is a cancer. A dirty word. Track bias equates to lane racing. It becomes a matter of riding the track instead of riding to suit the horse. The best constructed race plans are discarded. The pace of races can alter dramatically.
The competitiveness changes. That makes doing form for subsequent meetings almost irrelevant for the minor player.
Events have surely proved that tracks which are raced on sparingly can cope with a heavy workload over a set period even with inclement weather. Hopefully it's not lost on those in power.
So, what of the horseflesh and finding future winners? I doubt if we'll have to wait too long. The Labour Day Cup at Doomben on Monday looks an ideal event for the exciting Canny Lad colt, Dodge.
I've got a lot of time for this neatly conformed three-year-old from the stable of John Hawkes. In winning the Frank Packer Plate - won last year by Might And Power in a similar manner - Dodge displayed an exceptional turn of foot.
Dodge has the ability and scope for improvement and will develop into a Cups contender. Considering Dodge is by a Golden Slipper winner many would argue, but remember, he is a half-brother to Hawkes's Queensland Derby winner Tenor. Y OU would have to think Hawkes has had the Brisbane carnival in mind for some time. Instead of taking the traditional Guineas path into an AJC Australian Derby, Hawkes opted for an easier schedule of races for Dodge. This thinking is certain to reap further financial rewards in Brisbane.
Dodge has some ground to make up on the Derby winner, Gold Guru, and the Sydney Cup-winning three-year-old Tie The Knot, but that's not the case with Northern Drake.
Having defeated Dodge in the Peter Pan and Tulloch Stakes at Rosehill, Northern Drake contested the Derby but may have been a little immature and tired upon reaching the classic.
I'm confident Northern Drake will emerge as the best of the current crop of three-year-olds. He has the ability to lengthen stride and make up five lengths in the space of a furlong. He doesn't look as though he is going fast but he is.
He walks with a real sense of quality. He walks with purpose and is powerfully built.
One thing that really captured my attention and impressed me was Northern Drake's exceptionally wide jowl. He is very wide under the throat and that means the breeding capacity is enhanced.
Northern Drake should be given a winning weight for the Caulfield Cup next spring and that also goes for the New Zealand filly Champagne.
Three fillies stood out at the carnival. Champagne, the AJC Oaks winner On Air, and the Canterbury Guineas winner Tycoon Lil. The first two are certain to take on Northern Drake, Tie The Knot and co in the Caulfield Cup and will be more than competitive.
I believe Tycoon Lil to be the best of the fillies. Like Northern Drake and Dodge, Tycoon Lil is blessed with the ability to move into overdrive without much effort and that spells trouble for rivals.
The connections of Tycoon Lil are known to be seriously considering a tilt at the Cox Plate and I would be keeping that dream alive.
In her two-start campaign at Rosehill, Tycoon Lil displayed the necessary requirements to win a Cox Plate - high speed, stamina and class.
Awaiting Tycoon Lil in the Cox Plate will be Might And Power. Barring unforeseen circumstances and injury he is set to dominate weight-for-age racing as we gallop towards the Olympics.
It's doubtful a bias track will stop Might And Power.
© 1998 Sydney Morning Herald
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