Gorvennec

Trained by N W Alexander at his yard in Leslie, Fife, Gorvennec has managed just one place from six races so far, with his regular rider Bruce Lynn unable to find the winner's enclosure across their five outings together. That said, the season's most recent run came just yesterday, so this is very much a horse in the middle of his story rather than at the end of it. Alexander's yard has been in solid form this season, sending out 19 winners, which suggests Gorvennec is not short of good preparation.

What makes the picture a little more nuanced is the context behind the results. Alexander himself noted that a disappointing run at Hexham was followed by a notably better effort at Ayr, where Gorvennec finished third behind a horse called Evaluation — a rival the trainer was keen to point out was a very good performer on the Flat. In other words, that third place may have been worth considerably more than it looks on paper. Finishing behind a classy horse on a good day is a very different thing from simply coming third in an average race, and it hints that Gorvennec might be capable of better than his overall record implies.

He competes mainly at Class 4 level — the solid, bread-and-butter tier of British racing, a step or two below the top races — and has yet to win at that grade across three attempts. At seven years old, the clock is not exactly ticking, but there is an expectation that a horse of this age should be finding his feet by now. Still, with a yard in form, a trainer who clearly believes in him, and some encouraging signs buried within the results, Gorvennec's first win may not be as far away as zero from six makes it sound.