Fakiera

The recent form makes for sobering reading. In his last six races, Fakiera has finished ninth twice, been pulled up or unseated on two occasions, finished tenth once, and managed a third place on his most recent completed run. That third is actually the most encouraging piece of evidence in quite a while: it shows he can still compete at the sharp end when things fall right for him. He raced just a day ago, so this is very much a horse still in active training, not winding down.

Jack Kennedy, one of Ireland's most respected jump jockeys, has ridden him five times without managing to get him into the winner's enclosure. That is not necessarily a reflection on Kennedy — some horses simply find a way to be beaten — but it does underline how elusive that breakthrough has been. Trainer Eoin Griffin operates out of Slieverue in County Kilkenny and has sent out eight winners this season, so the yard is clearly capable of getting horses to win. The puzzle is persuading Fakiera to join that list.

What Griffin has said publicly about this horse is worth noting. He has spoken warmly about Fakiera's stamina, suggesting that getting the trip is genuinely his strength, and at one stage was weighing up a run in a prestigious festival race at Cheltenham — the kind of decision you only make about a horse you believe in. He also flagged a run at Fairyhouse as the better benchmark for the horse, indicating that not every disappointing run should be taken at face value. There is clearly a trainer who sees more in this horse than a bare record of nought from twenty would suggest. Whether Fakiera can finally reward that faith is the open question — but at eleven, with an active campaign still running, time is becoming the most pressing factor of all.