General / Graham Cunningham / 23 October 2009 / Leave a comment

Before jetting off to California to enjoy a well earned break, Graham Cunningham shares some stories and thoughts with betting.betfair.com

"Organisers are surely praying that the mighty West Coast filly Zenyatta will take on Rip Van Winkle in the Classic"

Europe - and yours truly - on the march again as BC 2009 draws closer

There will be no blog from this quarter next week as I'm taking a break in California ahead of Breeders' Cup 2009.

As with any family holiday, a little give and take is essential. Shopping, Santa Monica Beach and Six Flags rollercoaster park are high on the menu as a result of demands from partner and son, but I'm insisting on a visit to the Staples centre for the NBA clash between the Clippers and the Phoenix Suns and possibly an early visit to Santa Anita, too.

I'm glad to say that betting.betfair.com are pushing the boat out for extensive coverage during BC week and, having studied the main events at some depth, the following early thoughts occur.

1: You can't get away from the fact that the absence of Sea The Stars and the outstanding American filly Rachel Alexander leaves the event shorn of its two headline performers. In their absence, the organisers are surely praying that the mighty West Coast filly Zenyatta will take on Rip Van Winkle in the Classic. I suspect their prayers will be answered, though Quality Road appeals as a very live longshot if Todd Pletcher allows him to take his chance in the big one.

2: Europe should more than hold their own again. Granted, it's asking a great deal to match last year's haul of five winners, but I've taken some 5-1 in the belief that I will be able to trade out at a shorter price at some point before the Ripper and co line up for the Classic.

3: Sir Michael Stoute holds the key to the Turf with Conduit and Spanish Moon. Conduit was irresistible last year, but that race was set up perfectly for him thanks to the excessively strong gallop and the reliable Spanish Moon looks a very solid win and place alternative given that Cavalryman doesn't make the trip and the top American turf performer Gio Ponti has been switched to the Classic.

4: Goldikova is plainly the key horse as she bids to win the Mile again, but she may not have things all her own way. Granted, Freddie Head's star filly can be excused her defeat in the Foret, where she used up way too much energy to offset a poor draw, but the odds are very tight. Delegator's turn of foot could make him a serious contender if back to his best, while Cowboy Cal has fine record at Santa Anita and is the sort of bold front runner who could trade much shorter than his current long odds in running.

5: The Marathon looks one of Europe's very best chances of a winner for two reasons. First, Mastery and Father Time both have the form to go very close. And second, most of the home team are either suspect stayers or not that good - and in some cases both. Mastery showed real tenacity to beat stablemate Kite Wood in the St Leger and a repeat of that form will set a standard that very few of the Americans can hope to match. Father Time has been beaten fair and square twice by Mastery, and he's quirky to boot, but the natural ability is definitely there and it's no surprise to see him down to 5-1 having started this week at twice those odds.

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Don't get me started on starters......

An interesting little episode at Carlisle on Thursday while on RUK duty.

In short, the BHA starter Jason Callaghan and his assistant - both decked out in matching tweed coats and caps - tackled me about comments I made about the ragged start to the 15:15.

As so often in these cases, his complaint was prompted by a call on his mobile which prompted him to march over and say: "I hear you've been slagging me off on there."

He raised his voice somewhat, which caused me to raise mine by several decibels, and a sharp discussion ensued in which he insisted that the riders at the back of the grid "were perfectly happy to be there" and I retorted that the happiness of riders is a nonsense when it comes to ensuring a clean and fair start to a horse race.

For the record, at no stage did I slag the starter off. What I did do was argue that he would have been much better off asking the field to take a turn and come in again as opposed to allowing confirmed front runner Whisky Magic to get a flyer while assorted rivals forfeited almost 20 lengths for no apparent reason.

The conversation ended with former jump jockey Callaghan showing his true colours with that stock establishment line which goes that "you lot are always going on about punters" and me barking that he should watch the replay and get his facts right before coming over to shout the odds.

Perhaps he will resume the debate having watched the footage. And if he does then my position will be exactly the same. Appearances count at a time when racing's reputation is constantly under the spotlight.

And, whatever this BHA official thinks about the punters who effectively pay his wages, the sight of riders conceding long leads in such needless fashion drives many people who bet on races up the wall.

One last thing. Whisky Magic made the most of his flying start to win by a nose under a rallying drive from Denis O'Regan. Do you think he would have won without being handed the early initiative? No, nor do I.

Tags: Breeders' Cup, Rip Van Winkle, Zenyatta