Prayer for Relief- WHY

[snaffle1987]

Just saw this article on Bloodhorse:
http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/219100/zayat-romans-want-to-see-prayer-for-relief-in-pegasus

WHYYYY are Zayat’s doing this to this poor horse at NINE years old. I get it, he’s earned 2 million and has an impeccable record in his years on the track. But it is obvious he is not the horse he was in his younger years despite his “eye catching” workout recently.

Retire him already, better yet, ill offer him a 5 star retirement home if he’s a gelding by now. He’s earned his keep.

[Where_sMyWhite]

snaffle1987, I had the same thought this morning hearing he was confirmed in. Yes, I realize he had a good recent work but seems like there would be horses more suited to running the race (not that I think that Chrome/Arrogate can realistically be beating).

Noble Bird is also still in play as is Gunrunner if he can get out of the Fair Grounds.

One slot left open currently. It has been interesting to watch the gyrations on this race as something like this really hasn’t been done before.

[Texarkana]

Being nine years old is not a reason alone to retire a horse.

The horse had a bad 2016 after coming home from Dubai, but his connections obviously still think he is competitive.

Maybe if we had less turnover in this sport at the top, we’d be able to retain more casual fans.

[snaffle1987]

I’m not saying that age is his only reason to retire but to blame Dubai on a less than stellar 2016 is pretty sub-par. Dubai was in February of 2016 and in November of 2016 he was 9th of 10 in the Gr 1 Clark Handicap after being 5th of 8 in the Gr 2 Hagyard Stakes in October (his first race back since returning from Dubai in the spring).

He was 12th in the Breeders Cup CLassic the fall before he even left for Dubai and was 6th, 3rd, 4th in the races between the classic and leaving for Dubai.

He’s kind of been on the down slope since then. I am not sure what Zayat or Romans is thinking with going for the Pegasus with a 9 yr old horse who has shown he hasn’t been in it for quite some time now.

He is a beautiful specimen of a horse with over 2 million in earnings in 48 starts. While he hasn’t had as impressive of a career as some out there; he’s a horse who is still plugging along and managing to hit the place every once in awhile.

Are they just not retiring him because hes a gelding now or are they just hoping for a miracle with this horse at this stage in his career?

[Shammy_Davis]

Dale Romans’ comment about the gelding might not be as good as he once was but might be good “once” as he ever was doesn’t make sense. Sounds to me like the thoughts of a pilot who just lost all his engines on take-off and is hoping his old clunker can glide a couple miles to get back to the runway, just this once.

Zayat and Romans should take much needed vacations to renew their emotional and mental health.

PWC has made for a lot of good conversation up until now but the field beyond two or three class horses is not worth the initial hype.

[snaffle1987]

I really like prayer for relief. As I stated above he is a beautiful horse who has been all class his entire career. But I think he’s telling everyone he is ready for something new and his owners want one more chance at glory.

If the trainer came right out and stated hes not as good as he once was then why are they trying him against he 2 best horses in the world right now? are they just hoping their old campaigner breaks down trying to catch those 2 much younger horses? I don’t know, it just isn’t sitting well with me

[Texarkana]

Dale Romans was making a Toby Keith joke.

I don’t know Dale Romans very well personally, but I’d be really surprised if someone told me he’s a good poker player. Because the man lays it all out there every time, no bluff at all. If the horse is going to run big, he’ll tell you. If the horse is going to throw a clunker, he’ll tell you.

The horse has been inconsistent for some time and I’m not even going to pretend to know why. But Romans thinks he looks good enough at the moment to take that shot at a piece of the purse, which means he truly is looking good enough to take that shot at a piece of the purse. At this point, it’s a two horse race and everyone is just looking to pick up a check for third anyway.