Midnight Strike

That early promise, however, has not yet translated into another trip to the winner's enclosure. In 11 races overall, Midnight Strike has won just once — roughly 1 in every 11 attempts — and has now gone 25 months without adding to that single score. His recent form reads 13-13-4-3-3-4, meaning two remote finishes have followed a spell where he was knocking on the door with a pair of thirds and two fourths. There is clearly a horse capable of competing at a decent level in there, but the wins are not coming.

He is now trained by Jennie Candlish at her yard in Basford, Staffordshire — a setup that has hit real form this season, sending out 61 winners. That is a significant number and suggests Midnight Strike is in capable hands. His regular jockey is Dylan Browne McMonagle, who has ridden him in 7 of his 11 races and won once together, a win rate of around 1 in every 7 rides — respectable, but the pair are still searching for a repeat. Candlish had ambitions for him at last year's Coventry Stakes, one of the top races for younger horses at Royal Ascot, which tells you the yard believed he belonged at that level.

At his best, Midnight Strike is a sharp, short-distance horse — over five to six-and-a-half furlongs, he has won 1 from 6 races, a rate of roughly 1 in 6, which is where his record looks most competitive. He raced just one day ago, so he is very much an active participant right now. The question is whether the talent O'Brien glimpsed on that April afternoon at The Curragh is still in there waiting to surface, or whether that debut win remains the high-water mark of his career.