Epic Poet

His career record of 2 wins from 18 races — roughly 1 in every 9 — does not quite tell the full story. He places constantly, finishing in the top three in nine of those races, and his recent form reads 3-2-2-11-2-3: consistently competitive, with that single blip the obvious outlier. What the bare numbers also miss is where he does his best work. Over the longer distances of a mile and six furlongs to two miles, he has won 2 from 9 races — roughly 1 in every 4 — which is a meaningfully better record and reflects the way he travels through a race. O'Meara describes a horse that relaxes beautifully and almost cheats his way into contention, which is exactly the trait that keeps a horse going at the trip when others are emptying.

His big-race experience is genuine. He won a Class 2 race at Haydock Park in September 2024, one of the better domestic races below the very top level, and then headed abroad for the winter with serious ambitions. In Riyadh he found himself briefly bottled up in the straight but finished like a train, and O'Meara was quick to note the invitation that followed to the World Cup meeting in Dubai — one of the richest race days on the planet. The plan has always been to run him sparingly on home soil, keep him fresh for fast, dry ground, and point him back toward the Gulf next winter.

His long-time jockey Daniel Tudhope has ridden him in 14 of his 18 races and has 2 wins to show for it — a win rate of 14%, or roughly 1 in every 7 rides — a partnership built on familiarity with a horse who clearly needs riding with patience. O'Meara's yard has sent out 107 winners this season alone, so Epic Poet sits inside a very well-oiled operation. The Yorkshire Cup is mentioned as a possible summer target, which would be a serious test — but then this is a horse who has already punched well above his original price tag.