Drivers make some cash - a lot of cash. And as handicappers we will hear almost incessantly how important they are from the media.
Last year, we heard quite a bit for example, about David Miller - he was driving like a man possessed according to many. He was 38 for 259 and making some serious moola. However this year he is 9 for 235 and you get back about 50 cents for each dollar when you bet on him. Suddenly, he has "lost it", according to many of the same people.
He has not lost it, he lost power.
Last year he drove for Casie Coleman, who was an amazing 10 for 35. He also drove for Ken Rucker. He was 13 for 82. 23 of his 38 wins were layups.
This year, Ken Rucker is 3 for 83, and he does not drive much for Casie Coleman. Result: a 4% win percentage.
In this day and age where what vet you employ makes the utmost importance, drivers do not make horses, trainers make drivers.
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2 comments:
You touched on it..... it is not a trainers game, it is a vets game. I have met some unbeleiveably dumb horsemen who have good win percentages, and get accolades. They give the word "horseman" a bad name.
Given what has just happened in Canada (and in the US) with Bulletproof Enterprises (and all related partnerships), it is definitely a "vets" game when it comes to illegal drug usage. Simply put, the best trainer of the 90s in terms of wins was a notorious cheat from my backyard named Bob Belcher. Even after he was suspended, all his horses continue to race under a new trainer's name (some groom whom I am sure earned a good penny for her time). Sad state of a sport I love.
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