Fish gotta swim, Gill’s gotta claim
The other day at Pimlico, track handicapper Frank Carulli announced that owner Michael Gill had claimed 56 horses in Maryland in the space of about one month, spending north of half a million dollars — and possibly pretty far north — in the process.
Which, for those of you keeping score at home, is a lot of horses, and a lot of dollars. But if you’d been following the charts, it was no surprise at all, since Gill was showing up multiple times each day in the claim box.
We lost a horse, Terri’s T Bird, to a Gill claim last month. To which, one reader of this blog responded: “Urgh!” That non-word sums up the feelings of many for Mr. Gill.
I suppose that’s no surprise. Gill comes across as brash, prickly, a bit abrasive. He came from nowhere to winning hundreds of races annually, in the process changing trainers about as often as the rest of us change shoes, earning the undying enmity of some in the business, winning a top owner Eclipse Award, and announcing that he was getting out of the business altogether — a lot of drama in a short time.
For all that, I think it’s good that he’s back. (Let me preface this by saying I have no idea how he treats the horses in his care, including end-of-career horses. He’s had some good horsemen as his trainers, so I assume his horses are about as well cared for as anyone else’s, and I have no idea how he deals with retirees. So take my comments in that light.)
For one thing — the most obvious thing — he brings a lot of money into the game, which is to the benefit of everyone involved.
For another, he’s willing to gore the sacred cows in the game, and that’s a good thing. He’s willing to point out what should be obvious: that the leadership of racing is a small, exclusive club too often concerned with itself and not the betterment of the game. Sometimes — oftentimes — that works to his own detriment, as when he was largely shut out of Delaware after his shopping sprees raised some hackles. But holding the feet of the insiders to the fire is a good thing that promotes increased accountability and responsiveness to the public.
Moreover, I confess an appreciation for a guy with lots of money who chooses to tackle this game the workingman’s way: by claiming hardscrabble horses at hardscrabble tracks like Suffolk and Laurel. He’s got the money to do it the blueblood way, by buying expensive auction babies, but instead he chose a different route — to mingle, so to speak, with the common folk. It’s hard not to suspect that, had he piled his millions into the Keeneland sales rather than the Laurel claim box, he’d be viewed in a different light; his excesses, so outrageous as a claiming owner, might be more acceptable as he accepted the Woodlawn Vase.
Finally, and perhaps most important, there’s this: the claiming game, like any market, depends on sufficient buyers and sellers to work properly. Too few sellers means too few races, or too many races with short fields. Too few buyers relieves the pressure to place your horses prudently; it allows trainers to take more chances to plunge horses to spots below their capabilities, which makes for less competitive races (and less betting).
Moreover, claiming owners depend in part on “churn”; of course, a Lava Man-style home run is the hope of all claims, but in the vast majority of cases, that $10,000 horse you just claimed really is worth about $10,000 — maybe $15,000, maybe $5,000, most likely not, say, $500,000. So then the goal is buy low-sell high; win a couple of races, ideally move the horse up a notch or two, sell him to the next guy.
And unlike the folks who typically populate graded stakes winner circles, most folks in the claiming game are on tight budgets. The economic pressures on them are real, and the need to sell horses at the right moment critical to their ability to stay in the game. For most, they can only take the financial hit of so many retirees before the money runs out.
All of which is to say that Gill, or people like him, are critical to the health of the claiming game. It’s a fascinating game, with more in-depth analysis than handicapping and more bluffs and feints than high-stakes poker. It’s also, ultimately and more importantly, a marketplace that significantly benefits from the presence of aggressive, deep-pocketed owners willing to take a chance.
I’ve lost one horse to Gill’s latest shopping spree, and I suspect it won’t be the last. But that’s the risk you take in this game; by putting a horse in a claiming race, you’ve become a willing seller. You can’t blame the buyers if they’re willing, too.
Reader Comments
Well, this is a little disappointing. I assumed there’d be disagreement with this post, and I was right. But one of the things I’ve enjoyed about my forays into blog-land, at least the horseracing version thereof, is that folks have been able to disagree in a civil, rational manner, using facts to make their points.
Until this puppy engendered two bitter, ad hominem responses that I’ve chosen not to publish.
Cutting to the chase, both essentially said that Gill is a bad guy who ought to be kept out of racing. (One guy hates the claiming game, which is his right, of course, but which also severely restricts how much racing you can watch in this country). One of them encouraged me to revisit Thornton’s “Not by a long shot,” which I did; Thornton, in all honesty, raised issues that I’d forgotten, some of which are legitimate areas of concern.
According to Thornton, Gill has been suspended several times and, during his brief, bizarre tenure as a trainer, had a messy drug episode wherein he was caught with illegal drugs which he claimed were the property of his former trainer. In addition, Thornton points out that Gill routinely fires trainers, yells at jockeys, and drops horses down the claiming ladder.
Two of those issues — his behavior towards trainers and jockeys — suggest that he’s probably not the nicest guy in the world. But they aren’t of great concern to me — I just won’t work for him.
As for dropping horses down the ladder, that is, in fact, what every owner and trainer in the world does with their horses. They try to find spots where their horses are competitive and place them there. Some trainers and owners are more aggressive than others in doing so, but that’s no sin, either.
The drug/suspension issues are legitimately concerning. We certainly don’t want more drug cheating in the game, nor do we want to encourage drug cheats to enter. At the end of the day, though, I’m not entirely convinced that Gill’s behavior is any worse than any number of trainers who’ve endured drug and other suspensions and whose presence in the game is celebrated.
I’m not saying we should hold a party to celebrate his return. I’m just not clear why it engenders so much hand-wringing. Can anyone enlighten me?
The gentleman was involved with a nasty incident at Gulfstream Park a few years ago when a horse leg was cut off after a race.
I hope he stays out of Monmouth Park. The year he went for the record for most wins, he claimed everything and anything.
Fair point. I’d been unaware of this event until you brought it up. I assume you’re referring to the fatal breakdown of Casual Conflict at GP and what the NTRA website calls “subsequent and questionable veterinary practices performed.” The site does note that Gill and trainer Mark Shuman were exonerated of wrongdoing.
Just to be clear: if he’s got a record of wrongdoing vis-a-vis the horses, then that’s a different kettle of fish and his return nothing to be welcomed. I wasn’t aware of such a record when I wrote the original post — but the evidence, clearly, is starting to mount…
Nasty incident? Please know the truth before you write. The nasty incident was the media’s treatment toward Mr. Gill and myself. Monmouth would only be lucky if he would choose to race there. They need all of the help they can get. As for the article, I would swear that it was Mike himself writing it. You touched on a lot of what used to motivate him. He treated it like a big game of poker. I worked for Mr. Gill about 5 years. Never once did he yell at a jockey. He might have refered to them as pin headed idiots. I have done my share of yelling at jockeys, though. He never fired a trainer that didn’t deserve it. He gave a lot of trainers a great opportunity, some took advantage of it an made something from it. Others tried to take advantage of Mr. Gill and are where they are today because of their own choices. As for being king of the claimers that still doesn’t make sense to me. I personally would rather have a few “good” horses rather than tons of claimers. That is his choice. This game has missed him and needs him. Nobody is safe out there in the claiming world. He claimed one off me last Saturday. I wish him the best of luck with Echo Quest and hope he will come back for another someday. I personally will get my owner to take his Echo Quest money and reinvest into a 2yr. old at the up comming sales and try for a “big” horse. That is our choice.
Mike Gill is undoubtedly a controversial figure, but my sense is it mostly arises from jealousy. Mike is coming to Suffolk Downs where I am VP of Racing, and we welcome him. He will be bringing a large contingent of horses. I know one of the reasons he has chosen our track is because it is close to his home and he has expressed a desire to enjoy his involvement in racing with his children, I wish we could encourage more fathers to bring their kids to the track. As far as the incident at Gulfstream Park where the horses leg was cut off, I spoke with a highly respected New England veterinarian, and he told me that several times during his career he had done the same thing in an attempt to learn why the horse broke down. Horses are regularly given autopsies for the same purpose. I believe if they (or a human one) were described in detail in print it wouldn’t sound very appealing. My guess is if you polled the trainer’s Mike has claimed horses off that some would be sorry they lost their horse and some would be happy they did, just like it is with every other claim. I can’t speak for those trainer’s, but I can speak for our track, and we are looking forward to having Mike Gill.
The wrath the Mike Gill receives from the general racing public is a far cry from the Webster’s definition of “deserved.”
It always amazed me how much jealous hearsay and innuendo people took from the media as the gospel truth when it came to the Gulfstream Park “leg incident” and “drug violations” in Suffolk decades ago.
Mike Gill’s stable record would be considered sterling when you look at the rap sheets for high profile names in this sport that the racing public adores, there is a genuine double standard.
He is good for the game, I am glad to see him back in action and wish him nothing but the best. For every 1 person who is mad that Mike Gill claimed their horse there are 10 that are overjoyed. I wish he would start claiming out of my barn so I could get some turnover!! lol
Ed. Note: Mark Shuman and Phil Schoenthal formerly trained for Michael Gill.
What else can I say, you have said it all………….. Welcome back Mr. Gill, claiming horses is yours for the taking, anyone who feels they would lose a “good horse” should not try and steal a race anyway……..excuse me while I dry my tears, horse racing is about competition , placement, and management…….there is no such thing as honor among trainers. Im sure you had to bite the bullet on many claims, and the few successes you had you deserve. What the public does not know is that many horses are treated better than the workers on the backside, the only compensation a groom has and is delighted to have is a win…… in the winners circle with a picture….. and a two dollar ticket. Good Luck……..
I should have not called that a nasty incident. Gill and Shuman were cleared, and I should have stated that first before commenting.
And Mr Shuman, how is Xchanger doing? I thought he was gonna get there in the PA Derby.
Mike Gill claims horses which shouldn’t have been running in the first place. Gill wants to be a big deal on the track, and he’s bought his way into a club which doesn’t want him. Running at Penn? Philly? Hello! Gill has stated that he wants to be the leading money winner. Easy enough if you run 400+ horses (trained by someone else) until they break down or get claimed by someone else. Mighty Beau, among others, paid with his life for Gill’s hubris. Gill is no horseman. I don’t care what anyone says; there used to be a degree of honor in this game, and it’s gone. The catastrophic breakdown rate speaks for itself.