Lucky Diamond

What gives the picture a little more colour is who is doing the training. Fergal O'Brien, based in Withington in Gloucestershire, has sent out 90 winners already this season — that is a serious number, and it tells you this is a yard operating at a high level. O'Brien has a reputation for placing his horses patiently and improving them over time, so the fact that Lucky Diamond has not won yet does not necessarily mean the team has given up on finding the right opportunity. Quite the opposite — a horse in a busy, successful yard tends to keep getting chances until the penny drops.

Lucky Diamond raced just yesterday, so clearly the yard — sorry, the yard — are keeping the horse active and looking for answers. Sometimes that persistence is what it takes. The record so far is slim, but the story is still being written.