The Universality of Dosage 

Contemporary Dosage methodology has its largest following in North America, with the vast majority of data collected in support of Dosage coming from races run in the United States and Canada.  The analysis and interpretation of that data built the foundation for most of Dosage's applications.  Nevertheless, the general utility of Dosage as a pedigree classification technique requires a broader geographic scope, especially as borders and oceans no longer present barriers to international competition.  As it happens, there are Thoroughbred pedigree researchers in other parts of the world who have an intense interest in the subject and whose contributions have increased our understanding of Dosage's universality.  Among them is Mr. Steve Miller from the UK who has been instrumental in identifying modern day European-based sires for inclusion on the chef-de-race list.  Mr. John Hutchinson in Australia has gone so far as to create a supplementary chef-de-race list specifically for racing in Australia and New Zealand.  Similar efforts are under way in other parts of the world as well, including South America. 

In order to demonstrate the relevance of Dosage across a range of racing venues, it is necessary to generate data for other locations similar to those generated in North America.  This task involves the calculation of Dosage figures for the winners of races over a range of distances in other countries and on other continents, followed by an analysis to determine whether the data fit the model already established for North America.  We had previously published the data comparing Dosage in North America and Europe.  We now extend the study to include Australia and South Africa.  The results are presented in the chart below.  The chart graphically displays the relationship between the average CD of major race winners in North America, Europe, Australia and South Africa with the average distance of the races won.

The Dosage Model in North America, Europe, Australia and South Africa

The North American data (also separated by racing surface) include all Grade 1 stakes since 1990.  The European data come from 38 Group events in England, Ireland and France also since 1990.  The Australian data were obtained from John Hutchinson and include data for five Group 1 races, three since 1960 and two since 1980.  In this particular case, the CD's were calculated using Mr. Hutchinson's amended chef-de-race list.  Finally, the South African data include 20 Group 1 races since 1990.  The plot shows the relationship between the average CD of the winners and the average distance of the races over the time frames involved.  The straight lines were generated by linear regression performed on each data series. 

It is immediately obvious that the Dosage model holds not only for North America but for Europe, Australia and South Africa as well.  The inverse relationship between Dosage figures and distance transcends racing surfaces, nations, continents and hemispheres.  Of particular interest is the closeness of the trend lines for Europe and for North American races on the turf.