Aidan O’Brien has already come out and accepted the blame for not having So You Think in peak physical condition going into his last run, however Aussie jockey Hugh Bowman believes it was the use of a pace maker that the bought the dual Cox Plate winner undone.
Hugh Bowman believes the use of a pacemaker will not help So You Think
So You Think was an odds on favourite in the Prince of Wales of Stakes, however he was narrowly defeated by the Frankie Dettori ridden Rewilding.
However Bowman believes the pacemaker, rather that So You Think’s condition is what bought the horse undone.
Bowman said he thought So You Think was a sitting duck after pace setting stable mate Jan Vermeer faded quickly at the top of the straight.
“In my opinion it was the pacemaker that bought him undone,” Bowman said.
“He is the sort of horse who controlled races in Melbourne because we aren’t allowed to have pacemakers back home. In his last preparation, when Steven Arnold was riding him, he was in control of the pace the whole way.
“Pacemakers are ideal if you have a back marker or a horse that needs a good genuine pace but this horse doesn’t need that.
“I couldn’t be too over critical of Ryan Moore, but what I would say is that the horse would be better off without a pacemaker. If his stable doesn’t have one someone else in the race probably will, but what I am saying is that the pacemaker was the undoing of him at Royal Ascot.”
However it seems as if Bowman’s advice will go unheeded because O’Brien has once again nominated noted pacemaker Jan Vermeer in the Eclipse Stakes, which is also So You Think’s next target.
Ryan Moore will not be aboard So You Think in the Eclipse, as he has opted to ride Arc de Triopmphe winner Workforce. At this stage there is mounting speculation over who will ride So You Think.
Joseph O’Brien (Aidan’s son), Seamie Heffernan, Kieran Fallon, John Murtagh, and even the horses former Australian jockey Steven Arnold have all thrown their hats into the ring.
“Joseph rides him every day in, Seamie rides him in all his work, and Seamie rode him the day he won for the first time at the Curragh,” said trainer Aidan O’Brien.
“I don’t think there’s any scarcity of riders, so we’ll decide if he’s going to run or not and then we can talk about who is going to ride him.
“We’re delighted with him and everything has been good since Ascot.”
So You Think is currently favourite for the Eclipse Stakes at $1.80, while Workforce has also come in for support at $2.87.
