Quality of horses not the pace of races the reason why the Irish are so dominant
It was interesting to read during the week that Harry Fry and Aidan Coleman believe the way races are run in Britain is exacerbating the domination of Irish horses.
They suggested British races are run too hard from the outset, which results in many contests being won by the last man standing. In other words, British horses finish their races knackered and go through the pain barrier too early in their development, curtailing their careers, while Irish races are run very differently meaning their horses cross the line with more left in the tank. The inference is that they improve for the experience, and have more longevity as a consequence.
There is almost certainly plenty of truth in that, but what can anyone do about it? It started with Martin Pipe. He totally changed the racing landscape with the way he trained his horses, and won thousands of races by just having fitter horses who went off hard and exploited the lack of conditioning in the opposition.
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