Alien Storm

The overall career picture backs that up. From 27 races, Alien Storm has won 5 and placed 17 times — that is a horse who almost always gives a good account of himself, finishing in the first three in roughly eight out of every ten runs. His win rate of around 1 in every 5 races (19%) sits comfortably above average for a horse at his level, and with 2 wins from his last 6 outings, he is clearly in form right now. His recent sequence of results — second, third, sixth, first, first, second — reads like a horse who went through a brief blip and then bounced straight back.

The jockey partnership with David Bass is worth noting too. Together they have won 3 of their 9 races — roughly 1 in every 3, which is a genuinely strong hit rate for any combination. That kind of understanding between horse and rider matters, and Bass clearly knows how to get the best from him.

Trainer Charlie Longsdon, whose Chipping Norton yard has sent out 33 winners this season, describes Alien Storm as a progressive type. He won early in the season with an easy success before a narrow second under a penalty at Kempton showed he could go close even with extra weight. A Christmas run on ground that turned out to be too soft — too wet even for a horse who generally handles cut in the ground — saw him struggle to pick up his feet, but Longsdon is relaxed about it, viewing the experience as educational. He believes the handicapper's 2lb drop, bringing Alien Storm to a mark of 123, leaves the horse well placed for decent opportunities as spring arrives and the ground firms up.

For a horse who loves conditions somewhere between wet and normal, and who has a trainer clearly mapping out targets with care, the spring calendar looks full of promise.