James Henry

What makes the Dundalk connection genuinely striking is the sheer weight of evidence. Seventeen visits to that track, two wins — a 12% win rate there — and a string of placed efforts in between. For context, he has raced at plenty of other venues across his career and has yet to win at any of them. Dundalk, with its all-weather surface and indoor straight, clearly suits something about the way he travels and finishes. His best performances come at shorter distances — five to six-and-a-half furlongs — and on normal ground, where he has won both times from seventeen attempts.

His most productive partnership has been with jockey Scott McCullagh, who has ridden him to both of those wins from seven races together. That is a win rate of 29% — nearly 1 in 3 — which is a remarkable return compared to his overall record, and suggests the combination brings out the best in him. McCarthy's yard has been in decent form this season, sending out 15 winners, so the team around James Henry is not short of confidence or ability.

The one cloud is timing. His last win came at Dundalk on 16 January 2024 — now 29 months ago — and his recent form reads 3-3-8-7-12-9, which shows he has been running into a bit of a wall lately after two encouraging placed efforts. He raced just yesterday, so he is firmly in active training and clearly being kept busy. At seven years old, he is not getting younger, but horses who have found a track they love have been known to return to it and surprise people. Whether James Henry has another Dundalk win in him is the question worth asking.