Weekend Preview: It’s Question Time

Times change, and we do. The change is a question of time, or is it, more simply, that Question Time has changed? In my youth, I could barely watch Question Time because it was adult and boring, but now, while being dragged in to middle age via those rope-handgrips that stalls handlers use, I can barely watch Question Time because it's childish and stilted.

Gone are the days - and the Day, more's the pity, the Robin Day - of impassioned political debating amongst a representative panel that's kept in tow by an astute chairman, replaced by party-pooping party-liners who act rather than react, gushing words of buzz and opinion of fuzz with impunity; or a qualified business entrepreneur, qualified by being a Denned Dragon on the sister channel; or - take note Grand National - a nod to popular culture with an incongruous celebrity whose novelty value soon wears thin so that their contribution is not so much deliberating as debilitating.

Having said that, I've always thought, increasingly so, that racing would benefit from a Question Time type of programme. Not weekly, nor even monthly, but a few times a year, or whenever the need arises, it would make sense to have a structured, interactive on-air debate where various voices can be heard at one time, rather than the null, dull see-saw of statements that accentuates rather than alleviates racing's prime problem of factionalism.

Gather different faces, highlight certain cases, examine major races, and you've got the recipe for a  valuable industry show, potentially a constructive one, less of a them-and-us feel that racing still suffers from and more of a open forum. The logic is there, as seemingly is the wider appetite, considering that a racing Question Time is a half-brother by Presenting to Cheltenham Preview Night, which even the part-time enthusiasts can't get enough of.

I wonder how it might look....

(Copyright prevents reporting on the imitative importance of who presents what in racing and why, so, for these purposes, as well as continuity, David Dimbleby will host the pilot episode)

DD: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Rapid Lad Bar, here at Beverley Racecourse, for the inaugural edition of Equestrian Time.

And on the panel tonight, (needless to say, and a Partridge-style needless to say I had the last laugh) Jamie Lynch, chief correspondent of one-trick ponies renowned ratings organisation Timeform; random BHA spokesperson; random bookies rep 1; random bookies rep 2; random jockey/trainer; and the writer and comedian Jo Brand.

And our first question is from Daryll Beaderday, a disciplined punter, from Hull.

Q: Does the panel think that, after Saturday's race, Dynaste will go for the Ryanair Chase or Gold Cup?

DD: Does the panel think that, after Saturday's race, Dynaste will go for the Ryanair Chase or Gold Cup? Jamie Lynch.

Jamie Lynch: I think the very fact he's running in the Betbright Cup means connections are still harbouring hopes of him being a Gold Cup horse, and it makes sense for him try for the motherload, especially this year, as Dynaste has probably achieved more than all bar Silviniaco Conti. Put it this way, there are lesser horses at shorter prices in the Gold Cup betting and you could do worse than have a few quid on Dynaste now, at 20/1, in the hope and expectation of a win on Saturday convincing his team to go for gold.

Random Bookies Rep 1: Dynaste is the only one punters want to know for Saturday, apart from Many Clouds and Smad Place. And The Giant Bolster. Black Thunder a bit, too. We make Dynaste favourite for a repeat win in the Ryanair.

Random Bookies Rep 2:  We've taken a very different view. We make him joint-favourite for the Ryanair, with Don Cossack. And having listened to what Jamie had to say we're pushing him out to 25s for the Gold Cup.  

Random BHA Spokesperson: I think the first thing to say is that the Ryanair Chase has been a huge success. And a four-day Cheltenham. We've set up a review committee to ascertain just how much of a success the Ryanair Chase has been. The findings will be published in 2020, at a lunch on the fifth day of Cheltenham.    

Random Jockey/Trainer: Dynaste is a nice horse. Tommy Scu's having a great season. Whichever race David Pipe picks will be the right one. But don't forget about The Giant Bolster on Saturday - he loves it round Cheltenham.     

Jo Brand: I like the sound of Dynaste. It's like the words 'dinner' and 'fast' combined.    

DD: Our second question is from Lou Bricant, in Lambourn.

Q: In light of his Ascot comeback, does the panel believeSprinter Sacre can recapture his best?

Random Bookies Rep 1: I think he can. He looked right back on track until he blew up in the closing stages, and Nicky Henderson has got an excellent track record at getting horses to peak for Cheltenham. It was a very encouraging return. We make him 3/1 for the Champion Chase.

Random Bookies Rep 2: I couldn't disagree more with random bookies rep 1. He won't have gone unfit to Ascot, and the way he finished is a big worry, considering his previous problems that kept him off the track for so long. He's a lay all day. We make him 3/1 for the Champion Chase.

Jamie Lynch: I think it's two separate issues: can Sprinter Sacre recapture his best? No, that's extremely doubtful. But can he still win the Champion Chase against what's out there? Yes, absolutely so. As far as his comeback went, the positives outweigh the negatives. Odds of 3/1 assumes about a 25% chance that he can find 8-10 lb from Ascot, which ought to be enough in a thin division, and I reckon there's a higher probability that he'll do just that.

DD: Well, I'm afraid time has beaten us, as has the writer's insubstantial imagination, though the debate continues online, where you can read the views of the panel on other matters. But you get the picture.

Here, then, are my pre-prepared answers to the other pre-prepared questions, albeit the abridged version, with a bearing on the weekend.

Is Peace And Co a proverbial 'good thing' in the Triumph Hurdle? Yes. And he'll emphasise it in the trial that kickstarts Cheltenham on Saturday.

Is Saphir du Rheu the new Big Buck's? No. Comparisons on such a base level are lazy and unjust, but Un Temps Pour Tout could be the new Grands Crus, who won the Cleeve Hurdle in 2011 for Pipe/Scudamore. We haven't seen Un Temps Pour Tout for a long time, but that's no negative where this yard is concerned, and, despite taking an unorthodox route, doing the unthinkable and by-passing the Festival, his novice form was up there with the best, smashing up Cole Harden at Ascot before finishing a fine third (of 25) under top-weight in a strong handicap at Punchestown.

Would another Irish Champion Hurdle win for Hurricane Fly on Sunday present a dilemma for Ruby Walsh? It can't, can it? Maybe we, looking in, underestimate the attachment between a rider and a special horse who've conquered worlds together, and it needs remembering that Ruby Walsh was unwaveringly loyal to Kauto Star. But, even so, the power and pulling-power of Faugheen is such that it's almost impossible to imagine Walsh looking to the past rather than the future. Faugheen is the future. The Question Time-style party-line is that no decision will be made until the last possible moment. The suspicion is that a mind was made up at Christmas, and probably before.

Is Un de Sceaux a Champion Chaser in the making? Yes. Definitely in 2016, and he'd even make them all go this year if given the chance. Just as Mitchell Johnson reminded everyone of the near-lost art of fast bowling - very fast bowling - it's refreshing to see Un de Sceaux revive the craft of very fast chasing, his one-dimensionalism more a draw than a drawback. The Irish Arkle on Sunday could be spectacular because of him.     

New Timeform customers get £10 FREE downloads! Click HERE and simply enter code LYNCHYTF when you register.