MY CALL - SEA SIREN SOUNDS A WARNING TO HER RIVALS

By David Fowler | Tuesday, May 15, 2012

David Fowler is the principal thoroughbred caller for Radio TAB. David, who is a keen form student and punter, has enjoyed a lifetime involvement in the racing media. His personal blog, ‘My Call’, appears exclusively on HRO.

I think Sea Siren deserved more praise than she received with her breathtaking BTC Cup triumph.

I'm not suggesting the media downplayed the performance but the more I analyse it, the more I'm overwhelmed.

Three-year-old fillies at weight for age have had less than imposing record in this race and the honour board clearly demonstrates top horses regularly win this Group One event.

She was the "veteran" of only five starts before Saturday and had a fitness disadvantage not having raced for two months.

Yet she beat them with ease.

And there are two other salient points to further build a case that this was a blockbusting performance

She ran the second fastest 1200m in Doomben history, stopping the clock at 1:08.1, only bettered by Takeover Target (!:07.88) in December 2005.

And, a fact that has been overlooked by many, she did the "donkey" work chasing the speeding Adebisi from the jump so effectively she has burned the candle at both ends.

Make no mistake, she will win the Doomben 10,000 on that performance.

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Long-shots Hume and Noogoora Burr were upset winners in other Group and Listed features which cast doubt on the form out of their respective races.

And in a further downplay to both events, I couldn't find an excuse for the beaten
rivals.

The horse to follow out of the Rough Habit is the Kiwi girl Poste Restante. Sure, she pinched inside runs to be the closest of thirds but it was her first run in six weeks.

I'll have to be patient because she won't run again until the Oaks in three weeks time.

Eagle Farm … 2400m … loving it!

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Did you sense something peculiar about the Black Caviar affair on the weekend?

Luke Nolen deliberately throttled her down to win by an average margin in average time in the Goodwood. Fair enough, the big dance is not till June.

But it was post race Nolen and Peter Moody, for that matter, who were swift to be on the front-foot defending the margin when no interviewer had even challenged them about it.

Remember the line that "one protesteth too much"

There just seems a missing jigsaw piece to this puzzle at this very moment.

Maybe I'm thinking too far outside the square. Maybe not.

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A whisper about tinkering with our Autumn/Winter Racing Carnival has me amazed.

Is it itchy fingers or is it all hot air?

I'll say one thing. Queensland Racing and then Racing Queensland did a terrific job in the programming side of the carnival and sensibly left it to the clubs to market their own affairs which they all do extremely well.

It's not too long, every club gets a spot in the limelight and every horse, owner,
trainer and jockey have an opportunity.

Please leave it alone!

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Sky Channel and Victoria held Australia to ransom on Sunday over race-times.

To accommodate a tri-code meeting at Cranbourne and to allow every gallop, dog and trot event at that card to be neatly 15 minutes apart, every other club racing suffered with yawning 45 minute gaps between races and unsuitable pre-noon starts.

And they get on their high-horse when there is a push to take the national clock off them.

Good work Sky.....not!

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