Boxes

[TGJB]

ROUGH ESTIMATES for the last for three horses in the last at Aqu--

Insighting 14 1/2

Longfor the City  16 1/2

Graham   16 1/2

Could be a couple of points either way.

[Tavasco]

So I watched and played the Japan Cup last night and saw two of the most interesting events I\'ve ever seen in Thoroughbred Racing. I tuned in late in the card ... about the 7th or 8th race.

My kind of contest, about 20 entries per race with all kinds of big prices (not much like Hollywood). So in my first attempt I play a three horse exacta box the 11, 13, 15 I think - one (the 13 @ 25/1) or so.  I switch over to watch an Australian race or two and lose track of time a little. When I switch back to the Japan video I see three horses hit the line in a photo ... the 11, 13, 15 hooray!!

Then the camera pans back to show another horse a good three lengths ahead of my trio all by itself the clear winner. The #10, I look at the tote board and see 99 (this is a $500,000K race) you don\'t have 99/1 horses beat ya. But it happens the #10 paid $354.00 to win and beat my exacta box.

___________________

Undaunted, but bemused at my love for this sport, I see the favorite in the Japan cup hits odds on. I figure this one must be a sure thing. Another 18 entries 1 1/2 miles and 4/5 ... so I try another exacta this time with the favorite #17 with the #4, #13, #15 $1 each.

I watch the whole race, the #1 takes off and gets a ten length lead on the closest chaser and it takes seconds for the camera to pan back to my #17 in the rear of the field. The leader is stopping (thank god) and down the stretch comes the heard. It\'s sort of hard to tell who is who (part of the excitement)  But suddenly it is clearly the #17 and the #15 in a stretch duel with the #15 (a filly) on the inside behind the pacesetting #1 and its trailing anchor.

Oh jeez this is gonna be tight?? So the Samurai on the inside horse stands up in the stirrups and turns right crashing into my #17 several times. The two continue on to the wire like Stay thirsty and Groupie Doll. with the #15 beating me by a nostril. The #13 is third.

OK! So I don\'t know how this behaviour works in Japan but the #15 has to come down. Probably to second but maybe complete disqualification and jail time based on the severity. So I must have a winner the #17 over either the #15 or #13. both about the same 8/1 price.

So I listen to these English announcers speculate about disqualification, I watch six replays, I watch the tote board blink in two character sets for twenty minutes. The #17 is 1/1 nearly every spectator there has a ticket with #17 in the top spot. Do the right thing for the crowd stewards....... put the #17 on top.

Nope - they disqualify the fifth place horse for an entirely different incident??
Unpopular I heard the crowds groan from Tokyo all the way to Clearwater FL. Gag me with a spoon!

Now that\'s a lot of excitement and history for $9.00 in exacta bets. It doesn\'t top my $1,300 exacta  memory - where I bet the wrong track and couldn\'t see the horses because of the Fog at Delta until the finish line and thought those #\'s look familiar?? But hey

I wish I knew where to link you to a race replay - maybe somebody else can help on that.

[drshillito]

I stayed up late and watched the 2010 renewal of the Japan Cup to watch Buena Vista draw away from Rose Kingdom to win, however she was disqualified for something a lot less than this.  Can\'t remember why she was DQ\'d but it was something very surprising.  So I was pretty sure Orfevre was to be moved up here, but the Japanese stewards said no.  Seems like I heard once that there are like 24 stewards that vote on these decisions, leading to 20 minute inquiries?

By the way, I needed Orfevre, too.

[Dick Powell]

Try this link. It should work. English version will be available on Monday.

Two things about last night. For some reason, every Japanese race pans the field in the deep stretch. Instead of zooming out, they have the camera go from right to left just as the race is being determined. Second, the stewards gave the rider of the horse that should have come down a two-day suspension even though they left the horse up. That\'s two tough beats in a row for Oefevre - Arc and Japan Cup - for about $13 million in purse money. We might get to see him in the Dubai World Cup which they skipped last year.

http://jra.jp/JRADB/asx/2012/05/201205050811h.asx

[Lost Cause]

Dick Powell Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Try this link. It should work. English version
> will be available on Monday.
>
> Two things about last night. For some reason,
> every Japanese race pans the field in the deep
> stretch. Instead of zooming out, they have the
> camera go from right to left just as the race is
> being determined. Second, the stewards gave the
> rider of the horse that should have come down a
> two-day suspension even though they left the horse
> up. That\'s two tough beats in a row for Oefevre -
> Arc and Japan Cup - for about $13 million in purse
> money. We might get to see him in the Dubai World
> Cup which they skipped last year.
>
> http://jra.jp/JRADB/asx/2012/05/201205050811h.asx


Looked like it should have come down to me as the horse on the inside was pushing to get out from behind the tiring horse in front.  
What was the jock on the horse that won doing in the saddle??  I have never seen that style of riding..Gangnam Style??