Ardisia

The record speaks for itself: 5 wins and 8 places from 14 races, which works out at winning roughly 1 in every 3 races he runs. For context, most racehorses at this level are doing well to win 1 in 5. Ardisia has climbed steadily through the ranks too, from a debut win at Musselburgh in April to a Class 2 at Goodwood in August, another Class 2 at Ayr in September, and then the Two Year Old Trophy at Redcar in October — a Class 1, one of the top races in Britain. That is a serious progression in a short space of time.

What makes him stand out beyond the numbers is the consistency. His recent form reads 6-4-7-2-1-1, which tells the story of a horse that has hit a couple of rough patches but keeps finding his way back to winning. Part-owner Jane Mairs described him after Redcar as "such a trojan" — the kind of horse that just gets on with it. Jockey Oisin Orr noted that after working hard to get a good position from a wide draw, Ardisia was actually coasting in the final stretch, winning without being fully extended. That is an encouraging sign.

Palmer has been open about what comes next: a race on Champions Day, the sport's biggest end-of-season showcase. He is confident the horse can handle the step up in distance and is untroubled by whatever conditions the ground throws at him. The main challenge will be meeting the Mill Reef winner — a top rival — but even that prospect does not seem to be causing much anxiety in the Cheshire yard. When a trainer talks about a horse going "on any ground" and trying his heart out every time, that is code for something rare: a horse you can simply trust.