Joto

The recent form tells a consistent if slightly frustrating story. Three third-place finishes in a row suggested Joto was finding a level, but the run before last produced an eighth, and its most recent outing — just yesterday — didn't yield a place either. There are horses that are reliably there or thereabouts, and horses that are drifting, and right now Joto sits somewhere uncomfortably between the two.

At Class 4, which sits in the lower-middle tier of British racing, Joto has raced five times without a win. That's not a disgrace at this level — the competition is still genuine — but it does raise the question of whether a change of approach might unlock something. Trainer John Dawson operates out of Cleveland in North Yorkshire and has sent out two winners this season, so the yard is capable of getting horses competitive. Whether Joto can become one of those winners remains the challenge.