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Golden Valour

Golden Valour is a 10-year-old who has been around the block — sixty races, three wins, and a career that reads like the story of a solid, dependable horse who has never quite found his level. With a win rate of roughly 1 in every 20 races overall, he is a tough competitor rather than a flashy one, the kind of horse that turns up, tries hard, and often finishes in the money without quite getting over the line. His trainer, R Mike Smith, based at Galston in East Ayrshire, has him running in Class 6 races, where Golden Valour has actually shown his best form — winning 1 in every 11 races at that level, nearly double his career average. The yard itself is having a solid season with 25 winners sent out already.Based on TrackLab's AI analysis
Quick Facts
Age
10 years old
Sex
Gelding
Colour
Bay
Father
Kingman
Mother
Gracefield
Owner
West Loudoun Racing Club
Rating
48

📊 Key Numbers

Career statistics for this horse
60
Career races
3
Wins
5%
Win rate
avg ~10%
21.7%
Place rate (top 3)
avg ~30%
1 days
Since last race

🔍 Full Analysis

TrackLab's AI-generated assessment based on career data and recent form
TrackLab's Detailed Breakdown
Auto-Generated

The interesting part is what Golden Valour does well. He is a Musselburgh specialist, winning 2 of his 10 races there, most recently on 13 September 2025 — eleven months ago now. He also has a clear preference for middle distances of 7 furlongs to a mile, where he has won 1 in every 11 attempts. On normal ground he shows real improvement, winning at nearly 8%, twice his career win rate. What stands out is that despite this, he has gone winless in his last six runs and hasn't found the winner's circle since that Musselburgh success nearly a year ago. His most recent outing, just a day ago, saw him finish fifth, part of a sequence of mixed recent form — fifth, sixth, third, fifth, eighth, seventh.

Rhys Elliott rides him regularly and has one win from eleven races together, suggesting neither horse nor jockey has quite clicked as a combination. The trainer has indicated Golden Valour is much better than his current mark of 55 suggests, but form must speak louder than confidence. At ten years old and still active, he remains a straightforward type — best on normal ground at Musselburgh, over the kind of distance that suits him, in Class 6 company where he has done his winning. That last victory is now too far in the past to be encouraging, but horses like this often find one more win in them if conditions align properly.

Strengths & Risks

What the data says works for and against this horse
✓ What works in their favour
Excellent record on good ground: 2 wins from 24 starts (8%)
Excellent record on good_to_soft ground: 1 wins from 8 starts (12%)
Well suited by 7f – 1m distances: 9% win rate
Well suited by 1m1f – 1m2f distances: 8% win rate
⚠ What to watch out for
Poor record on good_to_firm ground: 0 wins from 10 starts
Poor record on soft ground: 0 wins from 8 starts
Poor record on standard ground: 0 wins from 5 starts
Poor record on heavy ground: 0 wins from 3 starts
Struggles on LH Galloping tracks: 1 wins from 41 starts

🎯 Where This Horse Thrives

Performance broken down by ground, distance, class, and track type
🌧 Ground Conditions
Good (firm-ish)
Loves
Good to soft (some give)
Loves
Standard to slow (all-weather)
Unknown
Good to firm (drying out)
Avoids
Soft (muddy)
Avoids
Standard (all-weather)
Avoids
Heavy (very wet)
Avoids
📏 Race Distance
7F – 1M
Loves
1M1F – 1M2F
Loves
Long Distance (2M+)
Unknown
1M3F – 1M4F
Avoids
1M6F – 2M
Avoids
🏅 Competition Level
Class 4 (standard)
Avoids
Class 5 (entry-level)
Avoids
Class 6 (grassroots)
Loves
🏟 Track Shape
Right-handed, tight turns
Loves
Left-handed, tight turns
Unknown
Long straights
Unknown
Left-handed, long straights
Avoids
Right-handed, hilly
Avoids

📅 Recent Runs

The last 10 races, most recent first
27 Jul
5th
Ayr
1m3f – 1m4f · Good_To_Firm · 13 runners
20 Jul
6th
Ayr
1m3f – 1m4f · Good_To_Firm · 11 runners
13 Jul
3rd
Ayr
1m1f – 1m2f · Good_To_Firm · 9 runners
5 Jul
5th
Ayr
1m1f – 1m2f · Good · 12 runners
19 Jun
8th
Ayr
1m1f – 1m2f · Soft · 9 runners
29 May
7th
Carlisle
1m1f – 1m2f · Good · 9 runners
20 May
5th
Ayr
7f – 1m · Good_To_Firm · 9 runners
27 Oct
6th
Newcastle
1m1f – 1m2f · Standard_To_Slow · 10 runners
9 Oct
11th
Ayr
1m1f – 1m2f · Heavy · 12 runners
1 Oct
11th
Musselburgh
7f – 1m · Soft · 12 runners

🏇 Jockey Partnerships

Every jockey who has ridden this horse, sorted by rides together
Rhys Elliott
9.1%
Win rate
1/11
Won / Rode
Paddy Mathers
0%
Win rate
0/4
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/4
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/3
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/3
Won / Rode
James Sullivan Current Jockey
0%
Win rate
0/3
Won / Rode
50%
Win rate
1/2
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/2
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/2
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/2
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/2
Won / Rode
Ben Curtis
0%
Win rate
0/2
Won / Rode
100%
Win rate
1/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
William Shanahan
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode

🏟 Track Record

Win rate at each course this horse has visited
CourseRacesResultsLast visitedWin rate
Ayr
Galloping
36 1 win, 4 seconds, 5 thirds, 26 other 27 Jul 2.8%
Musselburgh
Sharp
10 2 wins, 1 third, 7 other 1 Oct 20%
Newcastle
Galloping
3 3 other 27 Oct 0%
Hamilton Park
Sharp
3 3 other 12 Jun 0%
Carlisle
Undulating
2 2 other 29 May 0%
Dundalk
Galloping
2 2 other 24 Sep 0%
Lingfield Park
Sharp
1 1 other 16 Apr 0%
chelmsford 1 1 other 19 May 0%
Sedgefield
Sharp
1 1 other 7 Feb 0%
Goodwood
Undulating
1 1 other 3 Jun 0%