Flyingbolt or Arkle? - Ted Walsh's view

How great was Flyingbolt? Ted Walsh gives his opinion on horse racing's forgotten hero

[@Mike20216]

Respect his view, and flyingbolt was a monster, but himself was and will always be the greatest

[@lesblakeman]

Ted does have a good point , and so beautifully articulated as always , but REALLY , better than Arkle !!!! just can't be having that

[@johnwedgbury6817]

Beat height o fashion by further giving more weight away and could do it from 2 miles to 3 mile 5 furlongs. It doesn't matter if you're having it or not. Truth is the truth.

[@beverleymorris167]

Pat taaffe said Arkle was the best, and interestingly, mill House the second best chaser!

[@thomaslogue7773]

Ankle carried 12plus 23 times in his career phenomenal and when he was beaten it was usually his first run of the season conceding tons of weight flying out was a proper horse to 2and a half miles as ankle was a 3 mile plus horse.what a myth won the 1969 gold Cup and was rated 42 lbs below ankle these were good horses but ankle was a different being

[@beverleymorris167]

@@thomaslogue7773 well said sir👍 Ankle?😁👍

[@beverleymorris167]

@@johnwedgbury6817 different races ...2 years apart, pat taaffe said, "Arkle with a bit in hand"..the jockey who rode both in their races! He is the only one who knew!

[@neilcarpenter2669]

It's only an opinion guys , what we do know is that they were both absolute monsters and as good as there has ever been, probably one and two in steeplechase history.

[@keithhamilton1907]

Himself was simply the very best!

[@garrywilson9385]

what Mr 'know it all' Walsh, conveniently fails to mention is that, in the 1966 Leopardstown chase? Arkle gave 42lb to Height of fashion and beat her by a neck, also, he beat the 3rd, Splash by 15 lengths, Flyingbolt beat her by 10 lengths (almost the same weight consession) you don"t have to take his opinion seriously, just do your own research.

[@steveb3bmwm5]

Flying bolt is the only Irish National winner in the history of the race to have carried 12-7 to victory - a feat he accomplished when a relatively inexperienced 7 year old. And a feat unlikely to ever be repeated - particularly since the handicappers did't even ask a vastly more experienced 8 year old Arkle to do the same the previous year, electing to let him carry just '12 stone"!

[@oshawaxpress]

The same handicappers who had to change their system precisely because of Arkle's weight carrying ability. And no, it's not likely to be repeated because 12 stone is the maximum weight. What has 'experience' got to do with weight carrying? The best horses can carry weight well, and the lesser horses can't. 'Experience' has got nothing to do with it.The constant attempts to minimise the greats in sport, whether equine or human is both tiresome and pointless. They were two great horses. Their achievements are what they are and should be celebrated as such.

[@lukejfmccann]

distances in different races as form? Really?

[@markperryman1797]

@@steveb3bmwm5 Ha Ha, yes a mere feather weight 12 stone. 😀

[@beverleymorris167]

@@steveb3bmwm5 prince regent carried 12_7

[@terrioconnell5071]

Arkle was the greatest.

[@thomaslogue7773]

something ted forgot to say was arkle was having his first race of the season when he beat height of fashion and flying bolt was 2half mile horse where arkle was a horse at any distance up to 3 half mile there wasent a lot between them flyingbolt was an incredible horse but arkle was better

[@beverleymorris167]

Pat taaffe said, in his book "Arkle with a bit on hand" Because of his superior speed after the last. Though he did think on bottomless ground it would be very close,... flyingbolt s most favoured ground.

[@unasmyth1379]

Flyingbolt won The Massy Ferguson doing handstands, he won The Thyestes which is 3m by 36L and that's when they stopped counting how far he was in front, they rest nowhere, The Irish National 3m 5f, he was a relentless galloper, when Taaffe asked him to quicken in the Massy Ferguson he literally took off with him, he said he couldn't pull him back, he said it was frightening the way he attacked the fences that day, he was pulling up before any of they other runners got to the last fence, a weight carrying Performances that has never been matched to this day. So he was as good over 3m plus as he was over 2 and 2m.4F

[@roberto4001000]

​@@unasmyth1379 Yet pat taaffe rode them both and said Arkle was the better horse .

[@unasmyth1379]

@@roberto4001000 but after Flyingbolts win in The Irish National he was swaying towards Flyingbolt as been better than Himself, it's to be read 🤔 Sadly as we all know he got sick and was never the same horse, lots of older people I know said if they had ever met Bolt would come out on top

[@roberto4001000]

@@unasmyth1379 He never thought flying bolt was better than Arkle, his son tom clarified that .

[@mrbigshot1986]

Ted Walsh doesn't give a shit :-D

[@kenmorley2339]

Forget Timeform , every handicapper had Arkle as a phenomenon and in those days there were many of them ; professionals who had to publish not just jot down figures . My own view is that Flyingbolt would have beaten Arkle at 2 miles and it would be close at 2.5 miles but any further than that Arkle was King .

[@MultiArkle]

Dreaper ran Flyingbolt twice over 3m and 3m2f and got away with it because he was never out of his comfort zone in both races. Horse will always stay further in cases like that. When he moved to Ken Olivers along with Barry Brogan he never ran once over 3 miles and when he moved to Roddy Armatage he tried him at 3 miles and was oustayed by Titus Oats in the King George the finished tailed off over 3 miles at Ascot. Nothing during his career would indicate that in a high class field he would have got 3m2f round Cheltenham. He never ran in the 3 mile RSA novice chase at Cheltenham Arkle won it for Dreaper then Buona Notte won it for Bob Turnell while Flyingbolt was kept to 2 miles in the Champion Chase. Flyingbolt in my opinion would have been completely oustayed by Arkle in a Gold Cup.

[@masonjackgreenwood3509]

Mr Walsh knows fook all Arkle was the best and always will be

[@pauldonohoe3646]

Ted, I don't give a shit, Walsh.😂 A national treasure is our Ted.

[@Gos1234567]

not really

[@unasmyth1379]

​@@Gos1234567yes he is, not afraid to say it as it is, unlike some commentators pussyfooting around what they say, good on ya Ted, keep doing what you do...

[@lesblakeman]

Ted list the plot with this argument

[@phil2003ashleigh]

Bollocks Ted. And I mean that now!

[@jdcahill1926]

I won a few quid on denman and the star- luckily himself wasn’t in the race🤣

[@unasmyth1379]

Flyingbolt all day long, agree totally with Ted

[@gerardlacey5428]

Ted Walsh is a great talker,much like Paul Nichols.

[@johndevine8285]

Pat taaffe said arkle would give flyingbolt a stone he would know he new the two horses

[@tonymahon5025]

Ahh now Ted,Flying Bolt was brilliant,but he would never have beaten Arkle at levels.

[@stephenofmilford1216]

Ankle. unquestionably.

[@Paulhanratty885]

Foot was better lol

[@quick46]

Amazing that the two horses that were head & shoulders above anything were in the same stable at the same time & drugs were never ever used to enhance any kind of performance, some coincidence

[@looksliketouble]

Yeah nicholls done well hiding that with dennan and kauto.

[@raborian]

2 bottles of Guinness for Arkle daily. If you want to call that a drug. More of a sedative than anything else...

[@jamesmcfadden5709]

Pity about the bad language. Thought he was better than that

[@unasmyth1379]

He said shit, how is that bad language,

[@markperryman1797]

1:03 Ted doesn't give a shit....

[@steveo7165]

Awesome comment, & no bullshit "We apologise if you heard some unappropriate language" Lame PC trash apology!!

[@spaz5138]

ARKLE IS BETTER THAN FLYINGBOLT HE WOULD BEAT HIM EASILY

[@beverleymorris167]

No...beat yes... easily, no. Though pat taaffe did say mill House was better than flyingbolt......and Arkle destroyed him🤔

[@unasmyth1379]

​@@beverleymorris167Flyingbolt would have beat both of them

[@beverleymorris167]

@@unasmyth1379 got to disagree, Arkle would have sat on his tail, And left him on the run in. Flying bolt was a monster of a horse but, the jockey, who rode them both in races, in the heat of battle did say,...Arkle with a bit in hand, due to his superior speed after the last. On another occasion he said Arkle was a stone the better horse.😉

[@unasmyth1379]

@@beverleymorris167 Of course he was going to say that when the Duchess was dictating everything Jim Dreaper and Tom Taaffe did and said and wrote, including what races Flyingbolt ran in, rumours have it that if they ever met she'd remove Arkle from Dreapers yard, as she was afraid, knowing he'd beat Arkle,

[@beverleymorris167]

@@unasmyth1379 pat was a gentleman, and said things as they were. Rumours!!? That reply is absolute..rubbish.

[@andrewnelis9791]

Really above Arkle

[@user-mw1tt5mm9q]

The Bolt was really speedy and he did beat Arkle though he was getting weight as far as I recall. I was at the course the day The Bolt got his own back. As to was he better than Arkle? Arkle was a phenomenal horse whilst The Bolt was gifted and great he certainly was not phenomenal. Pity the 2 shared the same generation. Modern chasers really don’t have the class these 2 had.

[@leesog3203]

LOLLL!! :D .. Maybe he's right..

[@spaz5138]

I'm the owner of arkle flyingbolt is soooooooooo slow!!!!!!!!! Arkle is 100000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 times better than flyingbolt

[@unasmyth1379]

Lol 😂 Flyingbolt strangled Arkle on the home gallops giving him weight. No doubt he'd have done the same on the track

[@williammclaughlin811]

I DISSAGREE WAY TED ON THIS ONE