Amirite

He is 10 years old and currently in terrific form. Just one day ago he ran his most recent race, and his last six outings tell a story of a horse finding his groove — a win, a fourth, a second, a first, and two below-par efforts bracketing the sequence. De Bromhead has always been clear that Amirite is ground-sensitive: he is not a fan of heavy, churned-up going. On normal, decent ground he has won 2 of 8 races, a 25% win rate that puts him in a completely different league to his overall career figures.

Rachael Blackmore has partnered him more than anyone else — 12 races together, 2 wins, which works out at roughly 1 in 6. That is a meaningful partnership, and the pair have clearly built an understanding over time. De Bromhead's yard has had 107 winners this season alone, so this is a busy, high-functioning operation, and Amirite is one of the horses they are pointing at the biggest targets.

Those targets are significant. The plan, in De Bromhead's own words, is the Cross Country Chase at the Cheltenham Festival — a chaotic, fence-packed spectacle that suits horses with jumping ability and stamina — and then the Aintree Grand National. For a horse with 3 career wins to be aimed at the Grand National might sound ambitious, but he finished fourth in the Galway Plate this summer, one of Ireland's most competitive summer chases. He has already shown he belongs at that level. The next few months will tell whether he can take the final step.