LONRHO

[ra sun]

I think its definately time for a post dedicated to Lonrho. Im not full of information about him but hopefully it will be as popular as the notherly column as Lonrho is in amazing form

[Chrome Prince]

I agree that Lonhro is in spectacular form and has come back better than ever this campaign.
I think his real test will come in the Doncaster.
If I can secure black and white odds again, I'll definitely be backing him.

[Hammers]

Chrome,

Lonhro should be at least 4/1 for the Doncaster. It won't be a sit and sprint like the George Ryder - pressure all the way and giving weight to all but Defier. I thought Defier and Shogun Lodge were equally as impressive as Lonhro the other day when you consider the ridiculous sectionals. They will be better suited by the Doncaster.

Don't worry about getting black odds - it should be an open betting race.

[ra sun]

i agree about the race not suiting most horses but thats a part of lonhro's appeal, it will settle at most paces and i think its going to be very hard to beat in any race its in the way its going. looks like the cox plate is hawkes' main aim for him.

[osulldj]

Lonhro is an outstanding horse but he was given the Darley on a platter and the Doncaster will be a completely different race (which I think with even luck he can still win.)

In the Darley, as soon as Beadman went forward and they settled down into nothing more than a canter he was always going to win. The other jockeys showed a distinct lack of initiative and very poor judgement.

While he did plenty wrong in his time, I recall R S Dye facing similar circumstances in the Chipping Norton at W'Farm aboard Octagonal. Filante, Juggler and a couple of others were up front going as slow as ever while Dye and Octagonal were in their customary back position. Dye knew he had no chance of winning by staying there, so at the 800m he lit up Octagonal and took off around the outside of the field, went to the front and went for home. He won the race.

Now that I have that off my chest, there is no doubting the quality of Lonhro and he is definitely the one to beat in the Doncaster. John Hawkes describes Lonhro as a sprinter / miler who can get 2000m and I think thats pretty accurate. With that in mind I would be surprised if he ever wins a Cox Plate.

[Chrome Prince]

Osulldj,

I agree with your comments.

I'd even go so far as to say that Lonhro is a middle distance Champion.

Certainly yet to prove himself over anything longer than 2000m in a quality race.

[Luckyboy]

No doubt this is a quality horse and in any SWFA race up to an including 1600m is nearly a moral...

However, the Doncaster is a different race, pace, large fields, handicap weights.

I believe the key to his Doncaster chances lay in two areas:

1. His barrier draw;
2. Where the race leaders are drawn.

If he draws inside and a few leaders draw outside the race pattern will probably suit him.

An outside barrier draw and speed on the fence will make life difficult.

It should be a great race.


LB

The gutless Sydney bookies will serve Lohnro at around 6/4 in the Doncaster.I had a small serve about 6 weeks ago at 7/1 when John Hawkes was undecided about his program.I am still not confident,as I think his nemesis,Defier,will be better suited in this race.

[Late Mail]

Lonhro is the best horse in australia, if he gets beat in the doncaster ill give up betting

Booma

[brave chief]

Lonhro is no moral in the Doncaster, boomas.

Handicap, more early pace, larger field, etc.

The last 600m in the Ryder was 32.47, which indicates the farsical early pace. Overall however, the time was very slow for Group 1 horses, imo.

Kudos goes to Lonhro for adapting so well, but for the backmarkers the Ryder was little more than a barrier trial.

[ra sun]

i agree that he is better under 2000m but he has come back this year a better horse, no doubt. last year he beat sunline over 2000m. struggled in the cox plate after missing the start and then won the McKinnon stakes over 2000m. i think the cox plate is a very realistic goal for Lonhro but is the race a goal for anyone if Northerly is in form?? we'll see i guess

[ra sun]

just thought id post something to get it back on the first page so i dont have to search through to find it again

[xanadu]

G'day ra sun,

Lohnro is a very,very good horse....but champion?......well, I don't know.
What is his Group 1 tally at the moment, 6 or 7? His sire was an absolute racehorse and proved it with 10 Group 1 victories. Until the big, black son of the "Big O" wins that many Group1's I'll reserve my judgment. I still have fond memories of "Occies" victory at Warwick Farm in 1997 when R S Dye set him alight and caught the other riders napping(particularly the rider of Juggler) and held on to gain a truly magnificent victory. That's what thoroughbred racing is all about, so we should use the "champion" tag very sparingly. The last "true" champion was Kingston Town , which could win at all distances on all racing surfaces.
I hope Lohnro keeps winning but he still has to clear a pretty high bar to be labelled a true "champion" and match the deeds of his dad.
This is a good subject and I enjoyed reliving those memories.

Cheers.

[osulldj]

Booma said....."Lonhro is the best horse in australia, if he gets beat in the doncaster i'll give up betting"

So Booma, how does it feel now that you've given up the punt? :smile:

Murphy's law...The wider you open your mouth, the most space there is for your foot to fit inside it. I'm sure we've all done it.

[Mark]

The best example I know is of a bookie many years ago at Port Macquarie,, when asked his opinion of a horse having its first run spouted loud & clear that, "if this horse wins, I'll eat it". Of course you know the result...and another smartie got him after the race with, "so (insert bookies name), how do you like your horse?"

:grin:

[ra sun]

thats the bast part about horse racing you cant really compare one horse to another. darren beadman has said that lonrho is better than octagonal, whether thats true or not none of us know so i guess he has the best idea as he has ridden them both. last champion was kingston town?? i would have thought northerly may be a chance of beinf touted a champion??
2 australian cups
2 cox plates
1 caulfield cup
to name a few. but its a big call saying any horse is a champion and thats why i put this one up because i knew everyone would try to compare lonhro and octagonal

[xanadu]

G'day ra sun,

I hope that your "tag"- "ra"-meaning sun god in Egyptian history, and sun, doesn't mean you have been may have been in the sun too long.
Let's get something straight-I,for one never tried to compare horses in different eras.
All you can go on is history:
Tulloch-absolute champion, raced against the best at all times,particularly, Lord, considered an absolute "ultra" champion by our friends in Victoria.
Look at the horses that Phar Lap ran against-one in particular,Peter Pan, won two Melbourne Cups, although not consecutively.
Gunsynd was a very, very good horse but no champion, so we must be very careful not to label very good horses as "champions"-therefore, Northerly, a very, very, good horse but look at the way he has been handled, with lack-lustre performances in unsuitable handicap races-do you think this does the image of racing any good?
I respect your opinion but I think that I havr presented a pretty strong case for recognising the "ills" of racing today.

Cheers

[ra sun]

everyone is entitled to their own opinion mate and yours is always welcome here. i dont claim to be an expert and i never will be. hell, you guys probably all know a lot more than i do i just tell it as "I" see it and no one, not even you with your fancy little "jokes??" can expect any more than that

[ra sun]

funny.....i cant recall in all of my postings saying that i think lonhro is a champion. something to think about xanadu

[xanadu]

ra sun,

I hope that we haven't misunderstood each others comments and I hope there are no hard feelings. As I said in my post I respect your opinion. All the best.

Cheers.

[xanadu]

Well, he's done it again!

He's silenced any doubters after his Doncaster run and he is certainly getting up there on the equine order of merit.
Some of the other runners gave the impression they'd had enough this campaign. Although, the sectionals were pretty impressive in the early part of the race and this may have taken it's toll over the closing stages.

Cheers.

[ra sun]

does any one know when the (champ) said provokingly to spark up some trouble, is racing next and any idea of the field???????