Line Of Descent

Trained by Warren Greatrex at Upper Lambourn, Line Of Descent has spent most of his career competing in Class 4 races — the bread and butter of the sport, a level below the big occasions — and even there, winning has been hard work: just 1 win from 13 attempts at that level, or 1 in every 13 races. Greatrex's yard has been in fine form this season, sending out 50 winners, so the infrastructure around this horse is far from the problem. When Line Of Descent did win at Hamilton, Greatrex made clear that ground conditions matter enormously to him — the horse had been racing on terrain that was too fast, and a switch to more suitable conditions unlocked something. He described it as a horse coming to hand late, one that stays further distances and gallops in a relentless, grinding style that suits certain tracks better than others.

The challenge is that finding that right combination of conditions and track seems to be getting harder as the seasons go by. James Bowen, his most regular partner, has yet to find the winning formula across 6 rides together. Recent form figures of 2nd, pulled up, 6th, 5th, 3rd, and 5th suggest a horse that is competitive enough to keep appearing in the frame — he placed in 14 of his 25 career races, which is actually a decent return — but not quite able to get his head in front. He raced just yesterday, which means the team clearly still believes there is something to aim at. Whether Line Of Descent can rediscover the form that took him to Southwell nearly three years ago is the question his trainer is presumably still trying to answer.