Difficult Decision

Raced by trainer Oliver McKiernan from his yard near Dublin, Difficult Decision has benefited most from the partnership with jockey Phillip Enright, who has ridden it 11 times and managed to steer it to both of its victories — a 18 percent win rate together, nearly double the horse's overall average. That suggests Enright understands how to get the best from this particular runner, even if "best" now means landing a place rather than a win. The horse's most recent form shows exactly where it stands: four consecutive races without troubling the judge, fifth place six runs ago its only moment of genuine proximity to the frame in recent outings.

Difficult Decision raced just yesterday and remains actively campaigned, which is testament to either the patience of its the yard or the genuine belief that there might yet be one more race day somewhere with its name in the winners' enclosure. At 13, it is old for racing but not impossibly so. With only two wins to its name across a quarter-century of races, this is a horse that has earned its place through effort rather than talent — a reliable bit of the furniture at Irish racecourses, turning up, running its race, and heading home.