Duraji

What makes Duraji's profile a little more encouraging than that raw number suggests is the consistency it has shown without winning. Three places from nine races means it has finished in the top few more often than not — it's a horse that turns up and competes, even if the big moment hasn't come again. The recent form reads 3-–-4-9-4-8, which is a mixed picture: a couple of decent finishes alongside some struggles, and a gap in the record where it wasn't racing. Nothing here screams a horse about to rediscover top form, but nothing writes it off completely either.

Richard Hughes trains Duraji out of Upper Lambourn in Berkshire, and it's a yard in seriously good nick right now — 60 winners on the board this season, which is a strong return and suggests Hughes knows how to get a horse ready to perform. The challenge for Duraji is that when it has stepped up into the better races — Class 2, meaning the higher-quality events just below the very top tier — it has drawn a blank in all three attempts. That's a tough ask, and it raises a reasonable question about whether that level is simply one rung too high.

Chris Hayes rides Duraji most often, and together they have one win from five races — a rate of 1 in 5, which is actually a solid number and better than Duraji's overall record suggests. The partnership clearly works on its day. Duraji raced just yesterday, so it is very much an active runner, and with a trainer in this kind of form, the next opportunity to find that elusive second win might not be too far away.