What did you think of Curlin's JCGC win?

Question

I am referring, of course, to the Jockey Club Gold Cup on Sunday. What did you think of his win? There is no RIGHT answer, but 10 puntas (points) shall go to the most thorough answer.

I believe the colt has talent, but he hasn't truly been tested yet. He's shown he can run, but can he stick with it? His Gold Cup win was breathtaking, but I believe a lot of it had to do with the jockey's careful timing, and that Curlin was not putting forth the effort he'd done with Rags to Riches and Street Sense and Hard Spun. Still, he's one to watch out for--especially considering the lowered quality of horses coming out in the recent decades.

Answer 1

well i was really a big Curlin fan, but after them steroids, i kinda got off his tail.

but now knowing the steroids were not used in this race (that we know of) im starting to get closer to him again. and now that he has proven he can run like u said. i think he still has a long way to go in his racing carrear. he always, comes in at the last minute and then just improves with every stride and just takes the leader by about a head! but if thats the way he was trained, thats the way he was trained! lol

but that little bit at the end always gets ya goin! and i guess that is one thing i like bout him

-mel

RIP Barbaro

Answer 2

I'm not sure this colt can be faulted for 'not sticking with it' nor for not truly being tested.  He ran a bang up third in the Kentucky Derby in his fourth start.  He rerallied to run down Street Sense in one of the fastest Preakness' in history in just his fifth career start.  And his battle with Rags to Riches in the Belmont will go down for the ages.  Believe it or not I am not a fan of this horse but you have to respect his accomplishments.

As for the JCGC it was a good solid prep.  Even though the margin of victory was close I don't think there was much doubt he would get his nose on the line first.  Lawyer Ron has never done well at 10f and by the eighth pole he was shortening stride.  It's worth noting that Curlin has only had two starts since the beginning of June.  This race should give him a bit of bottom (conditioning) and I can see him moving forward and running a big race in three weeks.  Lastly his Beyer of 114 is the highest Beyer achieved by a 3yo routing this year, and is only slightly behind Lawyer Ron (as said very suspect at 10f) and Fairbanks (one freakout performance) on the overall leaderboard.

The biggest negative for Curlin is that JCGC winners have an abysmal record in the Classic.  Curlin has proven time and again that historical standards don't apply to him but it is something to consider.  Some very, very good JCGC runners have finished second in the Classic.  And of all the preps run this past weekend I can't get past Street Sense's race which sets him up perfectly for the Classic.  So my (tentative) exacta is Street Sense x Curlin.