Jump to content

Race callers and tight finishes

Pete Lane

By Pete Lane
in Thoroughbred Cafe

 Share

Recommended Posts

Pete Lane Open Class - R121

Pete Lane

Posted
Posted

Total respect to Matt Cross. Rarely gets them wrong.

Contrast that with the verbal diarrhea merchant at Waipukurau. 

Just watched the last and Blind Freddie could see that Thrilling held on.

Sorry to moan about this guy but the more I hear him the more he irritates me.

stodge Open Class - R121

stodge

Posted
Posted

MY all-time favourite was Richard Hoiles of ITV Racing calling the 2017 Nunthorpe at York.

Famously, Frankie Dettori on LADY AURELIA punched the air as he crossed the line leading Hoiles to say "Frankie thinks he's won, he's sure, I'm not".

As it turned out, MARSHA on the stands side had prevailed by a short head.

Leggy Open Class - R121

Leggy

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, stodge said:

MY all-time favourite was Richard Hoiles of ITV Racing calling the 2017 Nunthorpe at York.

Famously, Frankie Dettori on LADY AURELIA punched the air as he crossed the line leading Hoiles to say "Frankie thinks he's won, he's sure, I'm not".

As it turned out, MARSHA on the stands side had prevailed by a short head.

 

Zakhu Open Class - R121

Zakhu

Posted
Posted
15 hours ago, Pak Star said:

Matt Hill is the gold standard when it comes to putting his cojones on the line and picking a winner in a close one.  Crazy how accurately he sees the finish line.  

Just when you thought Victoria's race callers couldn't get any better after the retirement of Greg Miles I think he might be even better if that is possible.

Punchnblowmewait Maiden - R50

Punchnblowmewait

Posted
Posted
51 minutes ago, Zakhu said:

Just when you thought Victoria's race callers couldn't get any better after the retirement of Greg Miles I think he might be even better if that is possible.

I was always a G Miles fan but, towards the end, his calling became marred with unforced errors (ref: Mongolian Khan in the 2015 Caulfield Cup where, for the last 600m he became Magnolian Khan).
I will be honest and admit to being underwhelmed by Matt Hill being his annointed successor. However he quickly overcame my scepticism to the point where ,IMHO, I think he is at least as good, if not better, than G Miles.
Oz owns the 3 best callers on the planet. In no particular order: M Hill; D Flindell; M McNamara

https://www.google.com/search?q=mongolian+khan+caulfield+cup&oq=mongolian+khan+caulfield+cup+&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyCggAEEUYFhgeGDkyCggBEAAYgAQYogQyBwgCEAAY7wUyCggDEAAYgAQYogQyCggEEAAYogQYiQXSAQoxMzE4OWowajE1qAIJsAIB8QVenVt11MInLw&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:829cdd83,vid:F3Jg4r3m0vY,st:0

Zakhu Open Class - R121

Zakhu

Posted
Posted
7 minutes ago, Punchnblowmewait said:

Oz owns the 3 best callers on the planet. In no particular order: M Hill; D Flindell; M McNamara

Drag that out to a Top 5 and include Mcaullay and Adam O as well. Both simply outstanding.

stodge Open Class - R121

stodge

Posted
Posted
9 hours ago, Punchnblowmewait said:

Oz owns the 3 best callers on the planet. In no particular order: M Hill; D Flindell; M McNamara

A tad parochial, my friend.

I've never heard any of them but in a racing jurisdiction like Australia you have to be a good caller to get anywhere.

You've bid them - I'll offer Richard Hoiles, Simon Holt and John Hunt from over here. Three "H"s or should that be "aitches"? 

John Hunt critiquing his own commentary of the 2022 Saudi Cup:

This was before he went through the terrible tragedy which he endured with a courage and fortitude most of us can only envy.

Palliser Open Class - R121

Palliser

Posted
Posted
16 hours ago, JJ Flash said:

George S the exact opposite.

B Sherwin best commentator in NZ by the proverbial , doesn't get flustered and can read a race 

George Simon is a shocker, I think he's got worse. If you are only listening not watching and he calls your horse 5th or 6th, don't throw your tickets away as they say.

He can't get it right sometimes when there is half a length in it.

JJ Flash Open Class - R121

JJ Flash

Posted
Posted
8 hours ago, Palliser said:

George Simon is a shocker, I think he's got worse. If you are only listening not watching and he calls your horse 5th or 6th, don't throw your tickets away as they say.

He can't get it right sometimes when there is half a length in it.

Exactly and been like that for quite a few years now.

How that let Tom Wood go for GS belies belief as George is just a piss taker now in terms of commentary accuracy

Lord Wilf Maiden - R50

Lord Wilf

Posted
Posted
On 11/17/2025 at 10:27 PM, stodge said:

A tad parochial, my friend.

I've never heard any of them but in a racing jurisdiction like Australia you have to be a good caller to get anywhere.

You've bid them - I'll offer Richard Hoiles, Simon Holt and John Hunt from over here. Three "H"s or should that be "aitches"? 

John Hunt critiquing his own commentary of the 2022 Saudi Cup:

This was before he went through the terrible tragedy which he endured with a courage and fortitude most of us can only envy.

And you accused the other poster of being a "tad parochial"?

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...

While the owners and managers of RaceCafe endeavour to moderate and control the site and posts on it, they give no guarantee that posts are true and correct, and take no responsibility whatsoever for what individuals post on the site.

Posts do not necessarily reflect the sentiments, views or beliefs of Race Cafe or its owners and management.

The owners and managers of RaceCafe reserve the right to remove posts from the site and to provide details of members whose posts warrant scrutiny.