STARSTATZ RACING 05 AUGUST 2011

I had not intended to post today due to lack of preparation but the card looked easy and I badly wanted to post a late mail change to my pick on 7naps which has to offiicilly remain unchanged.

There are added factors like Craig Brennan's selection of Dr Grigoros which my Trackwatcher report confirms is in good form . Despite the advertised good workouts by "The Comedian" and "Swagger" my trackwatcher does not rate The Comedian's form worthy of a top 4 placing. Michael Lee's post is a conundrum He featured Placais but only mentioned Funca which I will assume to be his choice and longshot....Funca wins the comment "I was a bit disappointed with his trials and " he has not really acclimatised yet" and "he will probabbly need one or two runs" but contrasted with "but I am still hoping for a good run". If Funca wins these statements might be misconstrued as misleading and if Funca does not win the facts are there for you to see. I ask this question why was the article given the headline and there is no mention of Placais other rides for the day who may have useful chances like Zac Imperial.Dr Grigoros (the pick of Craig Brennan should have been the headline instead. Despite my feedback I fail to see why general information articcles like the write up on Placais could not have been done on Thursday or other non-race days or just left to be done on STC website. I believe the Straits Times advertorials on race days should be kept to feature the races for the day and 4 selections should be made in tune with other tipsters. I believe DR Grigoros will win today to continue the remarkable turn in form by Michael Lee and Craig Brennan in the Straits Times advertorials.

It was a great day for racing when it was announced inn the Straits Times that the Court of Appeal had overturned the court case between Punters Way and Racing Guide. I was also delighted that the final order was for the award of lawyers' costs in favour of racing Guide. Form my reliable sources both sides employed Queen's Counsel and legal costs may be close to a million dollars. Mr Fann has found out that it is no fun to sue your rivals on grounds with no solid foundation and the results have vindicated this columnist when he supported the concepts that both books were so far apart that nobody in his right mind could mistake Racing Guide passing off as a copy of Punters Way. Let me now count the ways...for the record I buy both books on Race days and each race book has its own merits but I truly found Racing Guide more comprehensive. Victory Trail should have a good look at the contents in these 2 racebooks and The HKJC website before they can vindicate their advertising position as a comprehensive publication and I certainly do not rate Victory Trail as more comprehensive than either Racebook. I think the term extensive would be more appropriate and sometimes meanings get lost in translation as comprehensive and extensive are quite similar. Extensive might be more appropriate as they cover racing in at least 3 centres.

What are the qualities of Racing Guide....I find the presentation well spaced out and the basic data that i need is available on good quality paper...especially the jockey's silks. There is space in between to write various notations and calculations for HR and SF calculations. The information on Sires is quite comprehensive but the information on the Dam could improve with more details. The information on Grand Sire and Dam Sire has been pretty useful. The formatis closely similar to the STC web page format which makes for easy and familiar reading. The trouble is that Punters Way has not made any major improvements for the last few years in terms of content but to be fair they have created some new intiatives like Jockey/Trainer match and strike percentages. I believe the strike rate of the horse is more important than the Trainer's strike rate but I see no harm in getting both. The stripes report in short comments has been particularly useful. They should take th initiative to gather extra information like stud and yearling fee and race record of the Dam...information on whether the foal is the 1st foal or otherwise and short comments on best performing progeny of both Sire and Dam.. New handicap tools like speed maps , handicap ratings ,pace of the race, sectional times should be introduced if they want to maintain their position as number 1 as Racing Guide is rapidly closing the gap.
To be critical of Racing Guide I would feel better if their scores are posted every week like the last 2 seasons when they were on top as if their scores are better than Punters Way at the end of the season who is going to believe them!
Their jockes sils are not so clear as Punters Way and they asre always out later than Punters Way. They have a leader column which allows me to analyse the pace of the race on a broad scale with no access to sectional times. Their best tome summary should do better if the weight is posted but to be fair the winning weights are mentioned elsewhere. Racing Guid have innovated with 1st up and 2nd up performances and tote movement, high Cr vs Current CR, highlight the better horse on wet tracks.
With all these didderences I do not see how anyone can mistake on racebook for another as they are as different as apples and oranges. I dont have time to dissect this subject in greater detail but this column has preempted the final Court result with its support of Racing Guide's position.

These are my selections for today ...please note the change in selection for race 9 as different from Singapore Nap.. With late mail advantage I expect Craig Brennan to be spot on with Dr Grigoros outshining The Comedian as he received a penalty of 9 points as compared to 8 points for The Comedian. CONCENTRATE ON THE MEDIUM AND BIG BETS

RACE 1 MEDIUM ... 2-7-11-5....BEST VALUE BET....NEW HORSE AMONG CLASS 5 TYPES...PACE VERY SLOW

RACE 2 MEDIUM ...8-10-9-1...GOOD VALUE BET AS 10 IS LIKELY 1ST FAVOURITE...PACE SLOW

RACE 3 SMALL...1-5-9-3...LONGSHOT OF THE NIGHT...PACE VERY SLOW

RACE 4 MEDIUM... 4-3-7-11....PACE GOOD

RACE 5 MEDIUM ...1-8-2-4...PACE GOOD

RACE 6 MEDIUM ...4-3-8-10...PACE SLOW

RACE 7 BIG..... 4-1-2-3....PACE GOOD
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RACE 8 BIG ....4-2-8-3...PACE GOOD

RACE 9 BIG 6-5-8-4-3-10-1....BEST BET OF THE NIGHT...BEST EXOTIC BET OF THE NIGHT...PACE VERY FAST