I do wonder who starts these threads. If you guys need pundits to tell you what to back you really shouldn't be on Bf in the first place.

To be a guest on a show like this you have to be insightful, original and entertaining - it's nothing about getting the guest to tell us what o back brigust - it's about having a grea show to showcase racing. Fitzgerald adds less than nothing. Cannot believe he doesn't read the forum either.

not fitzy

racing is f***** without  terrestrial coverage..............but iyo its safe with the likes of fitzy

bigust,

Julian Wilson had a privileged start to life that afforded him a decent education, and as a presenter on BBC he was knowledgeable and erudite. His main qualities in my opinion though was that he treated the viewer as being as equally knowledgeable and well informed as himself. I tend to find Fitzgerald's contribution condescending and banal, and the sound his voice very irritating. Decent jockey that he may have been doesn't mean that he is suitable TV pundit let alone that he would never ever be capable of presenting a live broadcast in the same way that Wilson managed so well.
Another thing Nick Luck isn't included in the ITV team, lets hope that he will be back on RUK

agree with kevo........chucking lucky and keeping fitzy is baffling

Why is it a joke cardifffc?

He used to be very decent if my memory serves me correct.

Any chance someone could email this topic to ITV executives? "Nice haarrse", "one of the unsung heroes in racing", "great lad" etc. etc. etc.

Why is it a joke cardifffc?

He used to be very decent if my memory serves me correct

Decent ?   ... as a jockey, yes he was.  As a jockey coach,  he probably is.    But as a broadcaster he is absolutely terrible and hasn't got any better in the 5 or 6 years he's been at it.  For all the media training that must have gone into him he's got worse if anything.  I'm amazed ITV can't see it, and when the viewing figures hit an all time low it will be too late.

statsman......he makes so many stupid comments.........his voice grates you.......his tipping record is not that good...he had a tipping line that ceased...........hardly likely to stop if youre successful...I happen to think he is a decent chap but he is not suited to tv.....especially when you see nick luck discarded............that's like replacing messi with peter crouch

if terrestrial ends*

jim McGrath had a tipping line with timeform.............not sure how it went but the fact its no longer would suggest it failed...........and GC tipping line is well documented

Cardiff your pen is going to run out of ink with these anti MF threads. People might imagine you have an agenda.

I watched the bbc transfer deadline last night............I learned far more about the players from the journalists they had in the studio rather the ex players...........you don't have to be ex jockey to be pundit...........in fact they are the worst pundits..........willie carson was on our screen for years couldn't string a few sentences together.........even if he was a good pundit you couldn't tell as his delivery was so awful

He's passed on the useful view that Elliot's here running in a carp novice hurdle isn't a superstar.

Priceless

incredible. most annoying bloke in the country

He's been even more lamentable than usual today. Opining that it helps if a horse is fit.

Well well well.

From Steeplechase news letter:
Poor old Mick, friendless in this world of social media critics. Since the announcement of his inclusion in the ITV team, I’ve read nothing but brickbats. I hope Mick kept a hold of his body protector when he retired from riding.

As a broadcaster, I think he’s improved two stones since he started. He’s almost always relaxed, comfortable and confident when they cut to him (he has the odd blip as they all do, even Clare). He’s lost that early rabbit in the headlights look and concentrates much more on his interviewee and encourages responses.

Although talkative by nature, he seems to me more thoughtful these days about what he says – which is where he seems to come in for most flak. But what do people want from him? He can’t be insightful and incisive about every horse; he talks about dozens of them every day. They each have a head and a tail and a jockey and form which is usually not dissimilar to everything else in the race. He’s not dissecting the plans for the Hadron Collider.

To those who think it’s easy, try this: go and get an empty bottle and set it bottom towards you on a shelf eyeline-high. Now talk to it about racing for a minute without hesitation, deviation or repetition. You will not get through ten seconds before you’re a blubbering wreck.

On a separate note, Nick Luck will be a huge loss, I think. His only failing seems to be in the eyes of class warriors for his appearance, accent and lucidity. He’ll be sorely missed.

Anyway, it’s all heading south. ITV’s four years will, I believe, be the swansong for racing as a terrestrially broadcast sport. It’ll end up having been on TV for about as long as I’ve been around, and maybe, like an old salmon coming home to die, ITV will prove a welcoming and appropriate final resting place.

We should all stop complaining and savour the coming end of an era.

Nobody doubts that Mick Fitz may well now be able to present a lot better on camara etc and indeed may be better than he was. Also I don't doubt he may well be engaging company. However being more polished is the very least a broadcaster should be and what we're after is insight which I'm affraid to say isn't provided. He's part of the club and doesn't want to rock the boat. Nick Luck is a good broadcaster and is a very good in the main role he presently occupies in so far as his presenting skills go. But I'm affraid to say the sycophantic nature of the questions in interviews and the lack of even a very slight challenge when all (including him) know there are often deeper questions that could be asked is what grates (think US Army Ranger at Chester) and his social background has nothing to do with it. The present Channel 4 output is dull and banal with little depth although yes they can all present well.

What needles those of us on here is that we know that the people are out there and it could be so much beter.

Kevin Blake, Paul Haigh, Gary O'Brien, Alistair Down, and Ruby Walsh would all be very good. Why is Walsh better than Fitz? He isn't scared to say what he thinks even though he may also be part of the club and he most definitly doesn't such up to people. Gary would be very good in the Nick Luck role and Kevin has been a breath of fresh air with his insightful analysis of areas that aren't even covered in the Racing Post.

It look like ITV have dumbed it down a level so expect zero crytical insight but plenty of banal interviews carried out by people who know less than most on here. Whatever I think of Channel 4 the output was a solid 7 out of 10 but it looks like things are going downhill.