RECORDS COMPARED

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 107, 2 November 1939, Page 17

RECORDS COMPARED

ROYAL CHIEF, NIGHTMARCH Royal Chief, the topweight for the * New Zealand Cup on Saturday, is ' \ one of the ruling favourites for the " v race, but to succeed he will have to '; equal the weight-carrying record held by Nightmarch. Royal Chief is un- *--J doubtedly a real stayer of the best -" -A class, but on his performances to date y>; he does not reach tha quality of Night- ..\r> march, who won the Melbourne Cup '' ,'~ by four lengths as a four-year-old in N ' ''j 1930 uhder 9.2, whereas Royal Chief ;.,£ was only fifth under 9.3 last year, - .- y when the field wa?. definitely not so ■_,"■'<■ strong as in Nighimarch's year. - - \p It might> be argued that this year's " ' y. New Zealand Cup field is not so '.' X:X strong in potential stayers as it was s <| in 1930, but this point may be dis- '* .-% putcd. Concentrate, who ran second \'k to Nightmarch, was a well-proven "i stayer in form, but Star Stranger was ' :T----past his best, and the remainder of ythe field comprised In the Shade ■ '-,■-'-:- ---(third), Prodice. Merry Damon. Gay ' .-f:f Crest, Count Palatine, Courageous, My • -;:: Own, Black Mint, Desert Glow, and. ntf Duellons. The time on a good track " , '■': was only 2min 26|sec. In this year's yA field Arctic King corresponds roughly V-< to the worth of Concentrate, and' who 4' would say that the remainder of "Sat- -•-:•-§ urday's acceptors are a less-likely lot- - r£ than the others of 1930? ,-",,':j Royal Chief has a long way to go. ; .v";| yet even to approach Nightmarch's ',">- ---winn- record. His own record to „'"•. date may be summarised as follows:— ": XJ> stake*. V:r Starts. ,Wins. Places. £ - ,;{) At 2 y<Sars ... 12 5 (j 2200 ".,-.& At 3 years ... 12 G D 278»* >.\"£ At 4 years— . :'%_ In Australia .9 3 4 625^' ' '-"I In X.Z. ... 7 2 2 930 .y At 5 years— • .',:?■s In Australia .5 2 2 1832*4 ' i'Xs_ Totals 43 18 ' 19 £14,087V_ iNightmarch during his career won .y| £32,100 in stakes, among his successes- "" being the Melbourne Cup (£12,222), '$ A.J.C. Epsom Handicap (£4072), and ' ; H New Zealand Cup (£2000) in handicap \S. class. His record, however,* ' was --~!? hardly as consistent as Royal Chief's,. ' yfe who has only eight times been out or- Xi% the money in 45 starts, "though it must -'---s be conceded that Nightmarch would ;- .% have been a much greater winner had *. 'X& he not been racing at the same time .•»"■£' in Australia as Phar • Lap, who had -f*''s' the advantage of a year iri-j age over1 :'■,>?•• him. . , '• "■'-. $. BEAU VITE, IN DEFEAT ;'_i There is an old' saying that weight*'; ■ *\~ for-age form is never wrong, but ona '.^"i was left wondering if such was the '^ case in the Caulfield Stakes, com- -'V'.Sv ments a Melbourne writer. There is ;-' ■ ■;- no doubt that the best horse at nine -■."rVfurlongs—High Caste —was the winner j ,\/| but what of the future prospects .of } y}y,. some who did not show up so well yt£? behind him. ; - " '-.-,'" '^ There is more than one who Is ,6f ■: ; ;J-f the opinion that the "walk" for greater '~,.,5$ part of the* nine.-furlongs upset some -.y\# of the other runners, and it is "going - :V;& to surprise these judges if" Beau yite .1..X}l lis not a whole lot better the next time -'-' *J !he.runs. ' -'0- 7 'x|