Captain Guinness

His most striking result came at Cheltenham on 13 March 2024 — a Class 1 victory, which means one of the very best races in the country. Rachael Blackmore was in the saddle, as she has been for all five of his career wins. The two of them have raced together 17 times in total, winning on 5 occasions — that is roughly 1 in every 3.4 races, a number that tells you Blackmore brings something out of this horse that others simply don't. Trainer Henry De Bromhead was characteristically measured but clearly moved afterwards, calling Captain Guinness "a warrior" and saying it was brilliant to see him come back to himself. Blackmore, for her part, described the way he travelled and jumped as "incredible" — high praise from a jockey not given to overstatement.

What makes Captain Guinness genuinely interesting right now is the combination of that class ceiling and a slightly inconsistent recent run. He hasn't won in his last 6 races, and his last victory was 25 months ago. But look at those finishing positions — 4th, 3rd, 6th, 2nd, 3rd — and this is not a horse falling apart. He is still competing at the top level; the wins have just dried up. De Bromhead has been open about a "disappointing season" but says the horse is "really coming to himself" ahead of a planned run at Naas, where Captain Guinness has an outstanding record: 2 wins from just 3 races there. If he fires at Naas, the Cheltenham Champion Chase becomes a real possibility.

One more thing worth noting: he loves wet or muddy ground. In those conditions he has won 2 from 4 races — a 50% win rate that is remarkable at this level. If the skies open before his Naas run, that could be exactly the trigger his team are hoping for.