Mancero

The recent form is mildly encouraging, at least by Mancero's own standards. A second-place finish is the most recent result, and the horse has placed twice in its last six races while staying reasonably competitive in fourth on three occasions. That suggests a level of consistency, even if it is the consistency of a horse that keeps finding one or two too good. Jack Tudor, one of the sharper young jockeys around, has been on board for seven of those nine races without managing to get Mancero to the front — through no apparent fault of his own.

David Pipe's yard in Somerset is a serious training operation — 35 winners already this season tells you this isn't a small-time setup. Pipe has produced winners at the highest level over a long career, so when one of his horses sits on a 0 from 9 record, it tends to raise a question: is this a horse still learning, or simply one that needs to drop into easier company to find its level? Mancero has raced four times at Class 5, which is already the lower end of the racing ladder in Britain, and hasn't won there either.

Raced just yesterday and still active, Mancero is clearly fit and being kept busy. The question for anyone watching is whether that elusive first win is around the corner or whether the horse is simply destined to keep making up the numbers. Two places from nine races isn't a disaster — plenty of horses never place at all — but at four years old, time is not exactly running out yet, and there is still room for the penny to drop.