Charisma Cat

Bred by the Waley-Cohen family and trained by Alan King at his Wroughton yard in Wiltshire, Charisma Cat is a horse that has genuinely improved with experience. Her first career win came at Southwell in June 2024, and by March 2025 she had landed a Class 1 race at Sandown Park — a significant step up in class. King's yard has sent out 58 winners this season alone, which gives a sense of the operation behind her, but Charisma Cat has earned her place on merit. Her most recent win came at Newbury just three weeks ago, and she raced again only yesterday, which tells its own story about how well she is in herself right now.

The partnership with jockey Tom Cannon has been particularly potent. In 6 races together, Cannon has ridden her to 4 wins — that is winning roughly 2 in every 3 times they team up, a remarkable record that suggests a strong understanding between horse and rider. King has noted that cheekpieces — a piece of equipment fitted around the eyes to sharpen a horse's focus — have made a real difference, and that the step up to longer distances has suited her. She performs best at between a mile and six furlongs and two miles, winning 2 of her 3 races at that range.

King has been candid that things have not always gone smoothly. A race at Market Rasen was one that got away when she struggled with the track layout, and he held her back from Cheltenham when others might have taken the chance. That kind of patient management — choosing the right race at the right time — looks to be paying off. With Aintree apparently on the radar as a next target, Charisma Cat appears to be heading into the biggest races of her career in the form of her life.