Falcon Nine

Over 32 races, Falcon Nine has won just twice, which works out at roughly 1 win in every 16 outings. That is not a record that demands attention on paper. But look at the last six races and a different picture emerges: a third, a third, a win at Carlisle, a tenth, a fourth, and then another win at Musselburgh. Back-to-back victories in August 2025 transformed what had been a story of near-misses into something with genuine momentum. Trainer Iain Jardine, whose yard at Carrutherstown has sent out an impressive 57 winners this season, has been candid about what changed — the horse had been lacking confidence, but winning has a way of curing that.

Falcon Nine operates at Class 6, the entry-level tier of British racing, and Jardine is the first to acknowledge these were not the deepest fields. But as he points out, races still have to be won, and Falcon Nine won them. He is at his best over a mile and a quarter, a distance that suits horses who stay all day rather than burn bright and fade, and he has won both his races on normal ground — conditions where you want to be when you are building a run of form rather than relying on the weather to do you a favour.

The partnership with jockey Mohammed Tabti is worth noting. In eight races together, Tabti has ridden Falcon Nine to both of his wins — a 25% win rate, or 2 from 8, which is a meaningful number at any level. Some horse-and-rider combinations just work, and this one appears to be one of them. Falcon Nine is now returning from a four-month break, which will sharpen curiosity about whether the confidence built in August has carried through the winter. Jardine believes it has, and with a yard firing on all cylinders this season, there is every reason to take him at his word.