JohnTChance,
I am normally one of the first people to call out a situation where I think that something that wasn't above board happens in a race. And everyone is entitled to their opinion. But I take a very different view than "he was injected before the race with something strong" that provoked him as you wrote.
Eric Reed is 0 for 47 last 5 years in nongraded stakes. He was 0 for 4 in graded stakes before yesterday in that time period. Some would say this supports your position. And while I understand that I think it supports my view also.
He is a trainer on paper with absolutely no chance it seems against the supertrainers with those kind of stats. So how could a guy like that win a race against the very best? While you think he did something nefarious, I certainly think it is quite the opposite.
As JB stated, this race, esp after last year's positive test on the winner, was probably very highly scrutinized and the horses were probably watched CLOSELY for the days leading up to it. My view is that you saw a CLEAN race. One where there was no Re-breaking by super trainer horses. And where were the other closers in the race who should have also been picking up the pieces? Maybe their super trainers just did not have them ready which is shocking b/c nearly all of them came into the race training super and they couldn't have looked any better, right? Maybe when a few super trainers were not able to ply their trade as they normally do, their horses did not fire.
A mile and a quarter dirt race run in clean conditions might have exposed who can really train a horse a bit and might have exposed who has other edges they didn't or more likely couldn't use yesterday in that race in particular. Good horses, good trainers, and good jockeys can come from anywhere. Or at least they used to. But in the past several years, no one can compete with the supertrainers by and large in graded stakes. But maybe if the races were absolutely CLEAN, you can see others that can win races.
Interesting that Jason Cook got a win yesterday also on the card in a restricted Stakes. He has not even started a horse in a stakes race the last 5 years except for Three Techniques in his last 3 starts. A 10 percent trainer the last 5 years overall. I guess your view is that Everyone Knows what happened in that race also. But maybe these races in Kentucky are starting to have a more level playing field?
On Friday, Lukas won the Kentucky Oaks with Secret Oath. Excluding her two graded stakes wins this year, he has not won a graded stakes since April of 2018. (Four years basically) The past 5 years he is 3 for 72 if you don't count Secret Oath's graded stakes attempts this year.
The CDI evil empire is not a team to cheer for often; but I believe they are trying to CLEAN up the game as evidenced by low percentage stakes guys getting some wins the last 2 days. I have other reasons I won't list here dating further back that indicate this as well.
Bottom line: I don't think Reed acted improperly to make it to the winners circle. There was a fast pace, his horse was far back, the other super trainers horses with closers "didn't fire," he got a perfect ride for Leon, and poly to dirt move worked also as someone mentioned has been a hot angle lately for improving horses and it cost many of us a lot of money at the gambling windows getting by the 3 and the 10. I tip my cap to the winners and say Congrats until a postive test comes forward or some other evidence that the guy took an edge.
