Kilbarry Hill

His wins have come at Class 4 level — the bread-and-butter tier of British racing, where reliable horses earn their keep — and he has been particularly effective there, winning 3 of his 12 races at that level, or 1 in every 4. The ground matters too: on normal conditions, Kilbarry Hill has won 2 of his 6 races, a rate of 1 in 3, which tells you he is at his best when the track is fair rather than extreme. Get the conditions right, and he becomes a genuinely competitive horse at his level.

Sean Bowen, a jockey of real quality, has partnered him seven times, winning once together — roughly 1 in every 7 rides. Mike Sowersby trains him from a small yard in Little Barugh, North Yorkshire, and with 8 winners on the board this season, it is clearly a team punching its weight.

The honest reality is that Kilbarry Hill has not won since Uttoxeter in December 2024 — now 18 months ago — and his recent form of finishing fourth, fifth, and third in his last six completed runs suggests he is competitive without quite getting back to the winner's enclosure. His very first win came at Hereford in November 2024, so his golden period was a relatively compact window. He raced just one day ago, which means he is very much still in active training and still being asked to do a job. At eight years old, he is an experienced, battle-hardened horse who knows exactly what racing is about. Whether another win is coming is the question — but Kilbarry Hill has never been one to stop trying.