Billyjoegold

The overall record — no wins and one place from three races — is modest, but the trajectory is worth noting. The form reads 10th, then 9th, then 3rd, which is the right direction of travel. Whether that improvement continues is the question the yard will be asking themselves.

What does offer genuine encouragement is the yard behind this horse. Ruth Carr trains out of Stillington in North Yorkshire and has sent out 63 winners already this season — that is a stable running in fine form, with the numbers to prove it. A trainer operating at that level does not keep a horse in work without believing there is a race to be won somewhere down the line. For Billyjoegold, that day has not arrived yet — but given how recently it last ran and how the form is at least moving in the right direction, it may not be far off.