Flat Track Fooled The Irish, Says Higgins

The Age

Thursday November 6, 2008

ANDREW EDDY and CRAIG YOUNG

FORMER champion jockey Roy Higgins believes Coolmore's three riders, as well as their horses, may have fallen victim to the flatness of the Flemington track in Tuesday's remarkable Melbourne Cup.

The three riders - Johnny Murtagh (Septimus), Colm O'Donoghue (Honolulu) and Wayne Lordan (Alessandro Volta) - were grilled by chief steward Terry Bailey over their controversial tactic of running the first part of the race at sprint-race speed.

The trio was spent by the turn and dropped right out. Septimus and Honolulu pulled up lame.

The riders told stewards that the horses needed a constant speed and were wary of not being caught up in the typical stop-start pattern of Australian staying events.

But in their endeavour, Higgins said, they did not properly take into account the vastly different racing conditions to what they knew at home.

"Flemington has a very flat surface, certainly in comparison to the tracks those boys ride at," he said yesterday. "Some of their tracks are uphill and down dale and, in my experience, horses relax more and settle into a comfortable pace when galloping over undulating surfaces," he said.

"But over here, the flat track, which these horses have probably not seen the like of, might give the horse that feeling of freedom and make them want to roll. That's the way they run their staying races over there."

Private clockers were shaking their heads in disbelief at the early pace set in the Cup when the three Coolmore horses cleared out.

One clocker had the Melbourne Cup field running along the first half of the race (1600 metres) in 1minute 40.8seconds. Last year, the field ran the first 1600 metres in 1:45.6.

The first 875 metres to the winning post the first time was covered in 52.5. They run those sorts of sectionals in the Newmarket Handicap - Melbourne's leading sprint over 1200metres.

Higgins, who rode Light Fingers in 1965 and Rain Lover in 1967 to Melbourne Cup victories for Bart Cummings, said he struggled for a while to adjust to the tempo when he rode in France in 1963 and 1964.

"Over here, we sort of adopt the kamikaze-style out of the gates, of charging to take up a position and then steadying the speed, where in most parts of Europe they take their time from the gates and gradually build their momentum through the race," he said.

"The tactic adopted by the Irish (on Tuesday) of riding them out from the gates to get that forward position was probably contrary to the way they are ridden at home. (The horses) are not used to being kicked out of the gates and gathering speed immediately.

"I can understand why they were probably keen to get forward of the field rather than sit midfield, because they were aware that the pace would steady down the back and they didn't want to be part of the backwash that happens in races like the Melbourne Cup.

"But there is no doubt the Irish riders misjudged the speed of the race and because of the flatness of the track they found it hard to regulate the speed of the race."

The man who rubbed out the Fine Cotton cast and was the steward responsible for ousting a trio of riders involved in the "jockey tapes affair" believes Johnny Murtagh had a "brain explosion" aboard Septimus.

"With the experience Murtagh has had in Australia and Hong Kong, he obviously had a brain explosion," said John Schreck, the former Australian Jockey Club and Hong Kong Jockey Club chairman of stewards.

"I thought he was a really good jockey, but it was a poor display. It was a very disappointing ride ... it is one he should be been ashamed of."

Kiwi trainer Steve McKee, whose New Zealand Oaks winner Boundless was forced to take the pace up to the tearaways before wilting to finish 15th, was astounded at the tactics employed.

"What arrogance," he said on Tuesday. "To have three horses leading by that far, who do they think they are? Do they think it is that easy to win the Melbourne Cup?"

Coolmore's trainer, Aidan O'Brien, appeared incensed that stewards asked him to explain his instructions to the three jockeys in the wake of the dismal performances.

He defended the jockeys and said simply "we didn't get it right".

Schreck had no doubt the trainer and jockeys had to be grilled.

"It would have been terrible if they weren't asked questions," he said.

© 2008 The Age

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