Highland Fashion

That one win came at Newcastle in November 2025, and it remains the high point of a career that has been more about participation than domination. Newcastle clearly suited on the day, and it is worth noting that horses who finally break their duck at a specific track sometimes return there with more confidence — though whether Highland Fashion gets that chance remains to be seen. The win arrived at Class 4 level, which is mid-tier racing, and the record there reads 1 win from 9 attempts — about 1 in every 9 races at that level. Not dominant, but not embarrassing either.

The recent run of form — fifth, seventh, second, first, sixth, fourth — is actually more encouraging than it first looks. Strip out the win and you see a horse placing competitively before dropping off slightly. The second place just before the win suggests Highland Fashion was building toward something, and the subsequent results hint at a horse that may need everything to fall right rather than one that can impose itself on a race.

Conor O'Farrell has ridden this horse five times without a winner between them, which is a notable blank even allowing for the overall modest record. The pair simply have not clicked. Ian Duncan trains from Coylton in Ayrshire and has sent out 9 winners this season — a yard that is clearly functioning well — so the infrastructure around Highland Fashion is solid enough. The horse raced just yesterday, meaning it is right in the middle of an active campaign, and at seven years old it is an experienced animal that knows what racing is about. Whether it can add a second win to its record is the question its team will be asking every time the field loads into the stalls.