Madajovy

The recent form makes for sobering reading. Looking at the last six races, two second-place finishes sandwiched between a pair of seventh-place efforts suggests a horse whose form blows hot and cold. That said, it raced just yesterday, which means it is very much an active part of Louise Allan's string at Newmarket — not a horse that has been shelved or is waiting for the right moment to reappear.

Allan's yard has had a quiet season by any measure, sending out just one winner so far, which gives some context to Madajovy's own struggles. Harry Skelton, one of the better-known jockeys in the sport, has taken the ride five times without managing to get the horse into the winner's enclosure — not for want of effort, presumably, but the pair simply haven't clicked in the way you'd hope when a quality jockey keeps coming back to the same horse. At Class 4, which sits in the middle of the racing ladder, Madajovy has had five attempts and drawn a blank each time. It isn't being asked to beat the best horses in Britain, but it hasn't been able to beat the ones it is meeting either.

None of this means Madajovy is without value. Placed horses earn prize money, keep yards ticking over, and can turn a corner at any point — that's part of what makes racing compelling. But right now, this is a horse whose most interesting chapter is still unwritten.