Itsgottobefun

That third-place finish is actually worth noting, because it suggests Itsgottobefun is not completely without ability — the talent to get competitive is somewhere in there. But a horse that has gone nine races without a win is running out of ways to give the yard optimism, and the pattern of results suggests the gap between promising and performing remains stubbornly wide.

The yard responsible is J S Moore, based at Upper Lambourn in Berkshire, which is one of British racing's most established training villages. Moore's team has sent out 17 winners this season, so this is not a stable short of knowhow or results. The fact that Itsgottobefun has found nothing from four races at Class 6 level — the lowest tier of British racing, where the competition is about as accessible as it gets — is perhaps the most telling detail of all. If a horse cannot win here, the options for finding an easier opportunity begin to run thin.

There is still time for the story to take a turn. Four-year-olds can improve, and that one placed effort at least shows the horse has finished ahead of some rivals at some point. But right now, Itsgottobefun is a horse whose name reads like a promise from a more optimistic era, and whose record reads like a gentle reminder that racing does not always cooperate with optimism.