October
MayThe wheel will turn
Jason Keegan (13/5) worries about Darren Weir’s current dominance.
It wasn’t long ago that Chris Waller was “unbeatable”, with questions about whether it was good for racing.
Peter Moody was huge, and not long before it was Gai Waterhouse, and way back it was her father, Tommy Smith, C.S. Hayes and J.B. Cummings.
You can’t legislate against success in a free country, and why would you? The wheel turns and others will get their chance.
Besides, more or better bred horses doesn’t guarantee success.
Godolphin, probably the world’s biggest stable, buys many of the worlds best bred yearlings, but it doesn’t dominate racing.
Rather than being scared, racing welcomes the likes of Godolphin, because they enhance competition, provide employment and improve the sport for all.
One of racing’s most endearing qualities is that a cheap horse and no-name trainer can and often do beat a multi-million-dollar blueblood trained by one of the big boys.
Trainers who’ve lost horses to a Weir, Waller or Hayes will survive, as fewer horses means fewer staff and stables required, so at least their expenses go down as well as their income.
Rising prizemoney won’t hurt either.
Rather than worrying about smaller trainers, I applaud Weir, Waller and Hayes/Dabernig/Hayes, and look forward to seeing who and where the next megastable will be, and how they go about it.
J
Wngaratta (Vic)