I have the solution to help Paisley Park win another Stayers' Hurdle

Oh my. We've been there before, but if the nation's horse Paisley Park wants to win another Stayers' Hurdle, only headgear will make it possible.

OMG I hear you crying. Our Paisley, with headdress. No no no.

Yes Yes Yes.

We all love Paisley Park and his second at the weekend against Noble Yeats in the Grade 1 Cleeve was another fantastic run.

But if you think Paisley Park is putting everything into it now, you're from another planet.

Now don't get me wrong, it may just be that Paisley Park at the age of 12 can't do more than he is for his fantastic trainer Emma Lavelle.

But I would be very surprised if the new permanent partner Tom Bellamy felt that way.

Simply put, Bellamy has ridden Paisley Park to absolute perfection this season and was a fine second on all three starts at Newbury, Ascot and Cheltenham. But every time you think: why didn't he win that?

Well, for me it's because our beloved Paisley Park, instead of being as wild as a pebble as many observers would like you to believe, is now a downright ape. Even if it is a talented one.

Paisley Park tried cheek pieces in November 2021 and it didn't work. But on that occasion he made the run, which is clearly not what he wants to do. So I would just forget about that, because evidence points him out. He can be dropped at the Stayers.

It should come as no surprise that Paisley Park needs help now.

Go back to 2018, he was handed a visor in the Albert Bartlett. He once again enthusiastically backed Kilbricken Storm (what happened to him!).

But forget that.

Wearing cheek pads/headgear at the Stayers and dropping in is the only way Paisley Park will get every chance at Cheltenham in March.

In fact, I would put on whatever I could find to help him and give Bellamy a nice pair of spurs.

And yes, like you, I love Paisley. But you have to be real in this game.

I love American racing and the Breeders' Cup is just magical. It's my racing heaven.

But especially in America, and with a lot to do with the country's recent drug problem when it comes to horse racing, every now and then you see a performance that makes you wonder: how did that happen?

Such was the case during last weekend's hugely valuable Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park.

How did National Treasure win for Bob Baffert and Flavien Prat?

The field went crazy in the early fractions of the Pegasus, with National Treasure contesting the lead until it got a small breather.

Prat conceded the lead to Hoist the Gold and jockey John Velazquez down the backstretch by a narrow margin, as the pacer recorded fractions of 46.20 seconds for half a mile and 1:11.21 for 6 furlongs.

Everything told you that National Treasure couldn't win after a few furlongs, and yet he kept running. How?!

To put the effort into perspective, Frankie Dettori rode the no-hoper Crupi into third after having him back there picking up pieces. The number two was also not on time.

National Treasure delivered a quite extraordinary performance. Almost too good to believe!

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