Liberty Bird

Both wins came in the second half of 2024 — first at Beverley in June, then at Southwell in September — and since then, Liberty Bird has gone 20 months without returning to the winner's enclosure. The last six runs tell their own story: finishing ninth, eleventh, tenth, seventh, second, and eighth. That second place is the bright spot, a reminder that the ability is still there somewhere, but the wins have dried up entirely. For a horse who has raced 23 times and won just twice, that kind of lean spell is especially hard to shake off.

The distance range where Liberty Bird performs best is between seven furlongs and a mile — two wins from 12 races at those trips, which works out at 1 in every 6. That is notably better than the overall record, and it suggests the yard knows where to find this horse's best chance of running a competitive race. Most of those runs have come at Class 5 level, which is towards the lower end of the racing ladder, and even there the win rate is just 1 in every 17 races — thin pickings that underline how hard it has been to get the pieces to fall right on the day.

Joe Fanning rides Liberty Bird most regularly, winning once from six attempts together — roughly 1 in 6. Fanning is an experienced and dependable jockey, but even he has not been able to unlock a win from this horse in recent outings. Trainer James Evans, based at Kinnersley in Worcestershire, has sent out eight winners this season, so the yard is functioning well enough. Liberty Bird raced just yesterday, which shows the team are keeping the horse busy and searching for the right opportunity. Whether that opportunity arrives soon is the question — but after 20 months without a win, patience is being tested.