Ambishio

That one win arrived at Southwell on 23 January 2026, and it is the kind of track that suits horses who go there with a plan. Southwell is an all-weather venue with a fibresand surface that rides quite differently from a typical turf track — it rewards horses that handle it well, and Ambishio clearly did. The win came around four months ago now, but the recent form suggests the horse has not fallen away since. Looking at the last six races in reverse order, the sequence reads 8-4-2-1-18-6 — meaning if you run that forwards, Ambishio won, then had a poor run, then finished second, then fourth, then eighth. That is not a horse fading; that is a horse finding a level and competing consistently at it.

Behind the horse is Michael Appleby, a trainer based in Oakham, Rutland, who has quietly become one of the more productive yards in the country. Seventy-nine winners in a single season is a serious number — that puts the yard among the busier and more successful operations in Britain, and it means Appleby knows how to place his horses and get results. A horse like Ambishio, in those hands, is likely to be pointed at the right races at the right time rather than thrown in over its head. The fact that Ambishio raced just one day ago tells you the team are keeping it busy and confident in its wellbeing. At three years old, there is every reason to think the best is still to come.