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Is Youmzain the unluckiest horse you have ever seen?
The racing post today asks its readers ,replies will be in tommorrows racing post ,what do our formites think?
bencar
Didn't I read in Saturday's RP that the horse had amassed £2.5 million in prize money???
damn I wish I was that unlucky....
Owl of Minerva
He's not unlcuky. If Dylan Thomas, Zarkava and STS had all missed the Arc's they won then Youmzain would have just finished 2nd to something else instead.
Gorg_George
Owl of Minerva wrote:
He's not unlcuky. If Dylan Thomas, Zarkava and STS had all missed the Arc's they won then Youmzain would have just finished 2nd to something else instead.
I think that's 95% true, there's always the possibility he could of overturned whatever was out in front, but his running style suggests he simply doesn't like to win.
Gorg_George
bencar wrote:
Didn't I read in Saturday's RP that the horse had amassed £2.5 million in prize money???
damn I wish I was that unlucky....
Yeah, if only we could all be that unlucky! This isn't to do with luck though, as I hope this little summarisation tries to explain.
group 1 horse, no doubt, probably in the top 100 of the last 30-40 years, if not all time, but just seems like he really doesn't like to win, he idles so much in front and always has. His achievements this year have been overlooked and overshadowed by STS. He deserves all his plaudits, does Sea The Stars (and then some imo, especially as the official ratings are concerned) and should go down in history as the beast he was, a true champion.
I've just looked it up and Youmzain amassed well over £3mil in prize money. Ran in a class 4 maiden first time out and finished 14l back 9/13 at York in a 7k race. Who'd of thought he'd go on to have such an illustrious and colourful career. Didn't even manage to get off the mark next time out in a class 5 £3k event at Yarmouth over his infamous trip of 1m. Next time out he faired just best in a very weak race (for his since proven class), and that was to be his last start as a 2-yo.
His first start as a 3-yo saw him just pip 2 horses to a small monetry win in a weak race (London Express, who finished 1/2 length second, only managed to win one class 2 handicap after this race in 7 starts (though admitedly, he obviously had his problems along the way) and the third placed horse in that race, a distance back, only competed 3 times and never landed a blow) Next time out he finished a very fast, eyecatching third to the very well thought of Dylan Thomas in the Derby Trial (In the Derby itself which DT, while adopting very unfamiliar front running tactics, finished a gallant 3rd in the majestic year of the mercurial colt George Washington).
Youmzie Finished a distant last in the King Edward (grp2) at Royal Ascot next time out and went on to win a group 1 in Germany only 2 months (4 starts) later.
17 consecutive runs at group 1 level, finishing out the placed positions 5 times (and more importantly to those directly connected to the horse, not one single time outside the prize money), runner up in the greatest flat race known to man 3 years in a row, and now a 6 year old, there can be no doubt that this horse, for his longevity at the highest level if nothing else, is an absolute superstar and deserves all the plaudits he gets.
He has an enigmatic running style that most punters really like, to see a horse come from mid/div/the rear like Youmzie did in a top quality race is one of the few things that makes this sport that much better than all the others around it, and should be celebrated (George Washington, my favourite horse of all time, the combination of his looks, his personality, and more his running style, made me fall head over heels in love with this game). He's a great, and nearly a champion, if Dylan Thomas had of been thrown out of 2007's Arc then he would truly be remembered that way (I think back to Da Re Mi and the race she was disqualified from this year and look at it in comparison to The Arc from 2007, and also look at the French stewards as a force and still can't quite believe DT kept that race. I'd backed him at 100/1, boy did that piss me off).
His racing highlights came in, most notably, 2008s Saint Cloud, a fantastic ride from hughes (I still can't believe he didn't win the Coranation the start before), who should NEVER of been jocked off this horse, especially in the place of Richard 'what day is it?' Hills. His 3 sensational seconds in The Arc. His fast finishing gallant 2nd in this years Coronation. His 2nd and his 3rd (only 2 starts at Ascot) in the King George.
This horse is a real warrior and a real superstar. He makes me proud to be a honest fan of this sport, and I wish there were more horses of this callibur in racing. I think I've gone on enough. His record speaks for itself, and to think I gave up on him in this years Arc, just wow.
