Wednesday, 5th August 2026
In ATC today….
Last week at Goodwood was a week to forget….
…. the small details matter….
…. and I’m sticking a well-handicapped horse on to the Watch List….
Oh…. and that Watch List horse will appreciate a bit of cut – as and when it comes….
Read on….
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Midak was pulled out of last week’s Chesterfield at Goodwood for a peculiar reason….
…. the vet’s certificate said he’d been bitten – by who, or what, or why I can’t say….
Nor can I recall another instance of a horse being declared a non-runner for that reason….
…. but by the time they’d passed the post in Saturday’s Stewards’ Cup, I was wishing someone had bitten me and declared me a non-runner – Tuesday through Saturday….
I could moan about a couple of picks having no luck in running….
…. and I could shake my fist at the sky and bleat about races being won by horses that were cut from my shortlist very late in the selection process – Evening Saigon and Hopewell Rock….
…. but playing woulda, coulda, shoulda gets you nowhere….
…. and the bottom line is that I didn’t get enough right across the week – end of….
There are no excuses. It didn’t happen. And there’s no getting around it or away from it….
…. reality has to be acknowledged and dealt with….
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Speaking on Racing TV on Wednesday morning….
…. Dave Nevison had it right when he said you only need to get one or two things right when you play the prices in the big-field handicaps at these big meetings ….
I think he’d backed Woohoo at a big price in the C3 handicap over 6f on Day 1 of the meeting….
…. which had found just one too good….
I had my own Woohoo moment on Wednesday in the HKJC World Pool Handicap….
…. when The Liffey found just one too good – having been advised the previous day at 25s….
That was the one thing I nearly got right that would have changed the whole bottom line outcome of the meeting….
…. but he got done 0.75l by Crimson Spirit – and on that slender margin hung the difference between a small profit across the five days and a big defeat….
I don’t think anybody else put that horse up – so I was pretty pleased with myself with that pick even though it got beat….
…. and it made me wonder what Hayley Burton had done with the horse to bring about such a transformation in his fortunes since she got hold of him from Denis Hogan in Ireland….
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In recent years I’ve become much more interested in concepts of horsemanship than I ever was as a younger punter….
…. probably a result of observing my partner Jo’s great skill with – and understanding of – our cats….
If Gip (a very temperamental and feisty tortoiseshell) were making a lot of noise, for example, I would have little or no idea what the problem is or how to make it stop….
…. but Jo will figure it out – that the cream towel is preferred to the blanket on the kitchen bed; or the blind is pulled so far down she can’t get behind it to look out of the window; or there’s a furball coming; or the litterbox needs attention….
Jo speaks cat. I’m not so good. And some trainers speak horse better than others….
I contacted Hayley Burton last week to congratulate her on her work with The Liffey and to ask what exactly she’d been doing with him….
“…. honestly, it's just been about giving him an easy life. Training is hard in Ireland so Newmarket must be refreshing for him. He's the best horse in the yard so he's getting more and more confidence back whilst he works with weaker horses rather than in a big yard with lots of better horses than him.”
Details – it’s what everything boils down to….
…. and attention to those details – understanding the horse and its individual requirements – can make a big difference as to what happens out on the track….
Like I say, it’s an area of the game I’m taking a much closer interest in these days….
…. and it’s nice when trainers respond to questions – some are rather grand and not so accommodating or courteous as Hayley….
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Whilst The Liffey has gone up 2lb to 91 for his performance in the HKJC World Pool Handicap….
…. Oliver Show – who finished 4/20 beaten 1.8 lengths – is unchanged on 89 and goes on to the Watch List….
George Boughey’s 6yo went into last season’s midsummer period officially rated 99 after finishing second in the Lincoln at Doncaster….
…. and whilst he showed flashes of that same ability back at Doncaster and at Newcastle later in the season….
…. he’d been off the boil this year – until last week….
He might have been closer still at Goodwood having met trouble in running at a key point after being smuggled into it from the rear by Billy Loughnane….
He looks handicapped to win on his current mark – granted a bit more luck in running….
…. and it may be that a little cut in the ground would see him to better effect still….
He’s an interesting handicapper heading into the latter part of the season….
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That’s all for today….
Back tomorrow….
Meantime – contact me at – nick.pullen@spapublishinggroup.co.uk
Stay tuned….
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