Epictetus

Those two big wins came at Epsom Downs in April 2023 and Goodwood in August 2023, and they mark Epictetus out as a horse that has genuinely competed with the best. Goodwood and Epsom are two of Britain's most famous and testing tracks — winning a top-level race at either takes something special. Winning at both in the same year is the kind of form that earns a horse real respect. The first career win had come earlier, at Newmarket in July 2022, so all three victories arrived within about 13 months — a concentrated spell of quality that the horse has not quite managed to repeat since.

That is the complication. Epictetus has not won in the last six races, with the most recent victory now 34 months ago. The recent form is not without promise — two second-place finishes and a third in the last six runs suggest the horse is still competing at a decent level, still placing, still turning up. But at six years old and operating almost exclusively in the top two classes, the margins are razor-thin and wins are hard to come by. Having a win rate of just 2 from 11 races at Class 1 level (roughly 1 in every 5 or 6) is actually a reasonable return at that grade, but it means Epictetus spends a lot of time finishing just behind very good horses.

One area worth watching is wet or muddy ground — Epictetus has won 2 from 6 races in those conditions, a win rate of 33%, which is well above its overall average. Trainer Jamie Osborne, based at Upper Lambourn, has had 47 winners this season, so the yard is clearly in good form. The most regular jockey has been Saffie Osborne, though their partnership is yet to produce a win from eight attempts together. Epictetus raced just yesterday, so there is clearly no shortage of enthusiasm from the team. Whether another win is coming is the question — but this is a horse with a proven ability to win on the biggest stages, and that never entirely leaves them.