Imperial Bede

He is trained by Jonjo and A J O'Neill at their Cheltenham base, a yard that has fired out 52 winners already this season — so Imperial Bede is part of a genuinely productive operation. Jockey Jonjo O'Neill Jr has been the man in the saddle for the vast majority of his career, riding him in 19 of his 23 races and winning 3 of them together, a win rate of 16% — roughly 1 in every 6 rides. That is a proper partnership, built over time and worth noting when he lines up.

His most recent win came at Catterick Bridge in February 2026, just three months ago, which means he heads into his next race in form rather than faded. The most recent six-race sequence reads 5-2-5-1-4, and while there have been a couple of quieter finishes mixed in, that second place and the win in the middle of the run show he remains competitive. He raced just one day ago, so he is clearly being kept busy.

Where Imperial Bede looks sharpest is at distances between a mile and six furlongs and two miles. He has won 1 from 4 races in that range — a 25% win rate, or 1 in every 4 — which is meaningfully better than his overall record and suggests the stamina test of that distance suits him well. The bulk of his career has been spent in Class 4 company, the solid mid-tier of British racing, where he has won 2 from 12 races. He is not climbing to the top of the sport, but he is a horse who knows his level and performs there with credit. His first career win came at Huntingdon back in January 2023, and three years on he is still winning races — at eight years old, that is no small thing.