Funny Cide

[marcus]

Funny Cide ran better than i thought last time - anyone think he might ever come  back around ?    

[miff]

Marcus,

What do you mean? He was beaten 12+ lengths from memory after laying third (the two in front of him finished  1,2)You are probably looking at his TG fig, can\'t imagine what he was awarded, despite being wide on turns.

His best days are way behind him and after his 3yr old campaign, he has become one of the the most over rated horses in memory.

Mike

[marcus]

miff - i understand that he\'s way beyond his formidable years , and was referering to his tg #\'s - when handicapping the last race he was in , i wasn\'t too concerned he would beat me . i don\'t remember too many horse\'s that had a triple crown campaign and still ran at 4 + 5 yo and older in the 10 yrs . i doubt whether funny cide gets that form and those 3 yo numbers going again - i was just curious what others thought becouse i noticed he\'s going this weekend ... - thanks , marcus

[miff]

Mark,

Thanks.Remember he\'s a gelding and Tagg is beyond conservative. He\'s run out of conditions and must run in stakes where the competetion is stiff for him.I think he\'s ALWAYS an underlay imo, and I\'m always looking for opportunities to buck reputations.

Mike

[jbelfior]

FUNNY CIDE should be retired. He\'s lost more than a few steps since he was a 3YO and he\'s souring on racing.

He\'s given those Sakatoga people enough already. They should never have run him at the Haskell that hot, humid day at Monmouth. In the paddock, he looked like someone had run a hose over him. He wasn\'t fit to race that day and they ruined him for a mere $50,000.



Good Luck,
Joe B.  

[marcus]

what you and miff are saying really makes sense ...  personally , i definately  agree retirement for the horse is best and that his connections are conservative , although i could think of another word to descibe their handling of the situation ...
 thanks , mark  

[Chuckles_the_Clown2]

Before everyone starts bad mouthing and writing off Funny Cide lets just remember he ran two bang up Triple Crown events and got over the top training too aggressively for the Belmont. Even then he finished third beaten five lengths is my recollection. Not all bad.

He won a Jockey Club Gold Cup and was right there in another if memory serves. (Granted the Gold Cup is not a 16 or even a 12 furlong reputation maker any longer.)

Bet against him in the Woodward, but am just as convinced hes sitting on a better race this time. Good enough to win? I won\'t go that far yet. But good enough to rekindle some memories.

jbelfior Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> FUNNY CIDE should be retired. He\'s lost more than
> a few steps since he was a 3YO and he\'s souring on
> racing.
>
> He\'s given those Sakatoga people enough already.
> They should never have run him at the Haskell that
> hot, humid day at Monmouth. In the paddock, he
> looked like someone had run a hose over him. He
> wasn\'t fit to race that day and they ruined him
> for a mere $50,000.
>
>
>
> Good Luck,
> Joe B.

[Wrongly]

Steve Haskin was asked what he thought of Funny Cide in an on-line chat at Bloodhorse.  Here\'s his take:

\"Haskin
I don\'t think anyone, including Barclay Tagg, can pinpoint what\'s wrong with Funny Cide. Let\'s face it, he was never in the same class as the geldings you mentioned. He did have a solid 4-year-old campaign, winning the JC Gold Cup and running well in other stakes, but since then, he hasn\'t been grade I caliber. It may be a combination of back problems, a dislike of hot weather, and a sensitive mouth, caused by pulling so hard on the bit. He has also changed physically as much as any horse I\'ve ever seen. He used to be a lanky horse, but since his first winter vacation when he gained a ton of weight, he has carried a lot of flesh, especially in the girth. His coat looks great and he still enjoys going out to the track every day, so as long as he\'s sound and is having a good time out there, there is no reason to retire him. He\'ll win his share of lesser stakes, and may pop in a big-time win on occasion when he\'s feeling good and everything goes his way.\"

[marcus]

ctc - wrongly , both of you have the other side of the coin w/ funny cide and i understand a \" personal \" decision is different from a \" bussiness \" decision . obviously , team tagg/haskin know what they\'re doing but i just can\'t help to wonder sometimes whether  connections ( generally speaking ) that want to run in alot of spots need to buy more horse\'s ...

[Chuckles_the_Clown2]

marcus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ctc - wrongly , both of you have the other side of
> the coin w/ funny cide and i understand a \"
> personal \" decision is different from a \"
> bussiness \" decision . obviously , team
> tagg/haskin know what they\'re doing but i just
> can\'t help to wonder sometimes whether
> connections ( generally speaking ) that want to
> run in alot of spots need to buy more horse\'s ...
>
>
>


Funny Cide is a gelding. What are they going to do with him? Feed him apples and carrots and let him get fat? As long as he\'s enjoying the track why not let him run and win where he can? He won that Dominion Day event at Woodbine in nice time, granted it wasn\'t against top class. He also beat Sun King this year and that one is proving to be a pretty nice animal, even if in a weak handicap division. Maybe Funny Cide won\'t get back to his best again, but he\'s still plenty of horse to earn more at this stage of his career than most horses ever get close to. If he can win the Brooklyn it will put him over 300K for the year. I think thats very satisfactory.  

Tagg is a good horseman. He only ran Funny Cide 3 times in 2005. He believes hes got the horse feeling good. Maybe he does, maybe he doesnt, but I\'m inclined to defer to a guy like Tagg. Then theres the Belmont angle. Funny Cide has liked that track in the past. You also have to like the weight off and the closer rail hole. He got strung pretty good in the Woodward. He may come up short again and there will be plenty of folks playing that trend.

Maybe hes a push at 4-1 but what will he be?

[marcus]

ctc- you make a good case and as it turns out ,  the bris qualifier i\'m going in on saturday  has the brooklyn . funny cide is certainly more than an unknown quantity in that race as you\'ve mentioned - if he\'d more than 2 weeks rest , i\'d like him  better though  ( i\'m still on the fence ) but it looks like the somewhat fragile line 02X take the buff gets the top spot w/ funny cide as my alt selection .  

i guess one of my questions when looking at the brooklyn is - who would i rather potentially lose to , an 02X pattern or funny cide ...
 
as the race now stands , i\'m guessing too that funny cide will be in the 4-1 range and take the buff @ 8-1 + up  . miff thought funny cide could get hammered pretty good on the board in ny . 3-1 or less on any almost horse in the brooklyn seems like an underlay  ...