Lagonda

What makes her interesting is that Venetia Williams saw something in her early on. After Lagonda went agonisingly close over fences at Exeter — beaten by a head — Williams decided to keep her as a novice chaser and give her a proper run at it. That patience seemed to pay off, with a win over hurdles at Chepstow in April 2023 followed by a chase victory at Bangor-on-Dee in February 2025. Williams described her as "a chaser through and through", which is the kind of quiet confidence a trainer rarely volunteers unless they genuinely believe it.

Her most regular partner in the saddle has been Shane Quinlan, and between them they have a good understanding — 2 wins from 18 races together, an 11% win rate, or roughly 1 in every 9. That kind of long-running partnership suggests the team believe Quinlan knows how to get the best out of her.

The honest part of the picture, though, is that Lagonda has not won in her last 6 races, and her last victory was 15 months ago at Bangor. Her recent form — a couple of placed efforts sandwiched around some blanks — tells the story of a horse that is still competing without quite finding the winning thread. She raced just yesterday, so she is clearly still very much in training and being kept busy. Venetia Williams' yard has sent out 16 winners this season, which shows the operation is in good health — the question is simply whether Lagonda can add to her tally before the season is out.