Alderley Charlie

Trained by Polly Gundry at her yard in Ottery St Mary, Devon, Aldersley Charlie has spent most of its career competing at Class 5 level — the entry level of British racing, where the competition is at its most accessible. Even there, the wins haven't come, going 0 from 5 at that level. Gundry's yard has sent out four winners this season, so the ability to get horses competitive is clearly there. Whether Alderley Charlie can become the fifth is the question.

Racing just one day ago, the horse is very much active and in the mix. Its two most recent runs produced a second-place finish and a tenth, which at least suggests some flickers of form — coming second is not nothing, and it hints that the horse is capable of competing when things click. The races before that show a string of unplaced runs, but the trainer has kept the horse going and clearly believes there is something worth chasing. Sometimes it takes a horse time to mature, find its feet, or encounter a race that suits it perfectly. For Alderley Charlie, that breakthrough moment is still out there.