Mac wrote: Let them enjoy themselves the way they want to.
Mac it is not the "enjoyment" that worries me - The trainer is a PROFESSIONAL, the owner is not. If a horse is clearly not Gr 1 potential then the trainer should tell the owner that or he is not doing his job - He is either lying to his owner or not giving the owner professional advice - It is like an estate agent telling a person that earns R2000 a month that he should apply to the bank for a bond on a 2 Million rand house. If I as a potential owner see a horse nominated for a race that is out kilter with the known ability of the horse I would never give that trainer a horse so it is in the best interest of the trainer to be realistic to protect his own brand.
If the trainer is prepared to nominate for a race like this with a horse that does not have the ability to get into the final field then how many other races is he putting his horses in where they are outclassed and thereby costing the owner money and breaking the horse's confidence. Horses have only a certain amount of runs in them so maximizing on those peak runs is imperative. There was a horse nominated last year for the July that was in the mid 70's at the time of nomination - a year later and that horse is now an 82 and still has never won or placed at Graded level. There is a certain Gauteng trainer that has raced a horse in the big 3yr old features for two seasons with zero results except that the horses in question get lumbered with a high MR without earning a cent in Graded company - Now the poor horse is rated a 97 but last won at 74 and earns that rating without the stakes that would normally go with it. The stud book also gets distorted as the mare now shows a 2 time winner instead of a potential 5 time winner who eventually could earn small black type. The old saying in racing is" KEEP YOURSELF IN THE BEST COMPANY AND YOUR HORSE IN THE WORST"
Yes, racing is about glory but more so its about placing your horse correctly to earn the most stakes. It is better to earn your MR through stakes and wins than a dirty 6th in a Graded event. Horses need confidence and teaching them to lose because they are outclassed is not helpful to the animal. I know that some owners force trainers to nominate for big races for no good reason and it is hard for the trainer to say no for fear of losing the owner and that is a situation that is unfair on the trainer but such owners eventually sour to the game and leave as they have unrealistic goals.
Topic Author
