Kylian

Three of his five victories have come in Class 2 races — one level below the very top tier — and one of them came at Class 1 level, at Sandown in July 2023. That is elite company. A horse who wins at that grade is not a fun little project; he is genuinely good. After that Sandown success, the team around him noted he had been a slow learner, someone who needed racing to figure things out rather than arriving ready-made. That description has aged well: his best performances have come as he has matured, and his last three wins across November 2024 and January 2025 — all in Class 2 races at Newcastle, Lingfield, and Wolverhampton — suggest a horse who has finally worked out what he is doing.

The ground matters with Kylian. On normal conditions he has won 4 of 6 races, a remarkable two-thirds of the time, and it is no coincidence that his winter all-weather victories came on the artificial surfaces that tend to ride consistently fast and true. He clearly wants things to be straightforward underfoot. Luke Morris has been his most successful partner, winning 3 of their 5 races together — that is 60%, which is an extraordinary hit rate and suggests the pair have real chemistry. Trainer Robert Cowell, based in Newmarket, has had 24 winners from his yard this season alone, so Kylian is part of a genuinely busy and productive operation.

His recent form does give some pause — a 13th-place finish just one race ago, having won just once in the last six outings overall. But this is a horse who has already won at the highest level, thrives in big races when conditions are right, and has a trainer in fine form. He raced just yesterday, which means another test is coming soon. For a horse who took time to find himself, Kylian has turned out rather well.