Aussie vets

Aidan O'Brien has hit out at the Racing Victoria stewards over their decision not to allow Jan Brueghel to run in Tuesday's Melbourne Cup, labelling the decision to ignore the horsemen and women responsible for the horse "ridiculous".

Ireland's perennial champion trainer had his hopes of winning a first Melbourne Cup dashed when his unbeaten St Leger hero and ante-post favourite was dramatically ruled out of Tuesday's Flemington showpiece (4.00am) after failing a vets check.

A statement released on the stewards' behalf said CT scan results had revealed he is "at heightened risk of injury".

However, a combative O'Brien, who had refused to have runners at the Melbourne Cup Carnival in recent years due to what he has long felt are overly strict veterinary checks and had only returned this year after a cooling of hostilities, slammed the decision.

At Del Mar, where O'Brien was overseeing City Of Troy's preparation for his Breeders' Cup Classic bid, he was asked if it was devastating news and said: "It was, absolutely."

O'Brien's frustration was in no small part due to his confidence in Jan Brueghel. He added: "It was unlucky for us, lucky for them. He was a Group 1 horse in a handicap with 8st 7lb and Ryan Moore riding him. And he was getting better every week and he only ever won by very little. So that's the way it is."

Pished up Vets telling The Worlds Greates Ever Trainer he cant run his horse......Absolutely fakin ridiculous....Aussie Shcum !!

It's the 'potential for injury' line that gets me. In that case no horse should ever leave its box or at least every stone over 20mm be removed from the ground they walk on!

acey the forums greatest pretender pops up with another statement worthy of a comedy sketch.

#wac.

It's the way i tell em.

O'Brien totally out of order.

Read this report post Anthony Van Dyck breaking down in the 2021 race.
https://www.racing.com/news/2021-10-04/news-international-obrien-clarifies-van-dyck-report

and the Veterinary conclusions after the ppst mortem
https://cdn.racing.com/-/media/rv/2021-rv/the-sport/2021-04-28-anthony-van-dyck-fatality-report-final-1.pdf?la=en

Identified no one was at blame but they ultimately recommended 'improvements' to existing procedures. That is what Jan Breughel failed with O'Brien not accepting any risk management by Aussie authorities. To55er.

Before people have a go at him the horse was pretty much a penalty kick at the weights.

Because of the different breeding seasons Northern Hemisphere 3 year olds are hard to pin down when they go south and it’s resulted in some big wins eg Rekindling and Cross Counter in the Melbourne Cup (CC could’ve carried top weight that day and he would’ve still hacked up) and Adelaide and State of Rest in their weight for age Cox Plate (State of Rest beat off the Aussie 3yr old Anamoe that day but he was pretty much a 2 year old by our standards because of the breeding seasons).

So Van B with his relatively light season and untapped potential was going to be hard to beat and I get the feeling this was his big plan all along (he explained a while back that because of City of Troy they had to reshuffle the pack and give alternative targets for everyone else so quite plausible this was the goal rather than a St Leger after thought).

Then you got Ryan on board who’s won all their 3 biggest races already ie the Cup, Cox Plate and Golden Slipper.

It’s frustration and disappointment rather than anger.

Ps I really wanted to run to help boost the price on OneSmooooothOperertor but now I’m fearing a price collapse.

Please don’t get Pricewised or anything ffs

Ellisont to Train a Melbourne Cup Winner?....Are ye totally aff yer heed man....Got nay fakin chance.

5-1 third fav i cant believe it.....If that Nag wins i promise to leave Forum never to return.

Well you know there’s that controversy that the race could be downgraded to listed status…so I wouldn’t be so keen to write off the trainer.

Quickened up sweetly to win the Northumberland
Cruised home in his trial over 12f (race previously won by Dunaden en route to his Cup win)
Experienced Melbourne Cup winning jockey booked
Currently set to carry a featherweight 8 stone.

Just needs to dodge a car park draw and a good run should be in the offing here.

Nay hudles form whatso ever.

Aye hurdles even.

Correction has got hurdles form but still got nay fakin chance.

Aussie vets vet the horses as seriously as their immigration counterparts. But, it did not help Anthony Van Dyck. I think the UK ought to do the same esp those from Ireland. Maybe engage Mr Bolger. He'll know where and who to look more aggressively.

Good point.

Remember, this is everything to do with horse welfare and nothing at all to do with trying to stop the pesky Europeans nicking the big race off of them.

Onesmoothoperator's participation in the Lexus Melbourne Cup remains in the balance with a reinspection on Saturday required after he was deemed an unsuitable runner by the local stewards due to sustaining a cut.

The Brian Ellison-trained runner is 8-1 for Australia's signature race on Tuesday, the shortest price of two potential British representatives, but was found to have a cut to his right heel when inspected on Thursday.

He emerged as a live contender when winning the Geelong Cup in his warm up last weekend, although connections are hoping he does not join ante-post favourite Jan Brueghel as the second European to be ruled out by the stewards. The St Leger winner was withdrawn having been at a heightened risk of injury, a decision called "ridiculous" by trainer Aidan O'Brien.

Onesmoothoperator passed his initial scans and has not been impacted by the cut, according to owner Patrick Doyle. He will be re-shod on Saturday with connections optimistic he will be able to participate in the AU$8 million (£4.07 million) contest.

Doyle told local radio Racing and Sport: "It's quite straightforward, he pulled a shoe a couple of days ago but he's worked well since on the gallops without any problem. It was his timetabled vets' check on Friday and, with good reason, they'd like to see him again to make sure the cut on his heel is improving. He's being reshod on Saturday.

"It's not affecting his ability to race or run, it's about making sure the cut heals up. The guys are applying antiseptic stuff and bandaging. We're confident; it's not ideal but hopefully he'll be alright."

Onesmoothoperator also got a form boost in the week as Sea King, who was a nose ahead of him in the Ebor at York in August, won the Bendigo Cup in impressive fashion for Harry Eustace.

"His form is solid," Doyle added. "Harry's horse won very well indeed. We were upsides in the Ebor and rode similar races having been too far back to win it but running nicely. The Ebor is generally strong form and it all adds to the recipe for the race."

Listened to women on nick luck podcast the other day. The cup is under s3vere threat and scrutiny, the fatalities in recent years have been  nearly exclusively European,  I think 6 O'brien horses alone, I think they believe even any further fatality could finish the race. So have become risk averse,this women said that the death rate for the cup is something like 48 times that of the average Russia race

Aussie race

Just stay away from the handicap….

I blame climate change,it covers all ills,and the Aussies believe big time,although they will be the last to kick ze bucket if Putin goes nuclear.