Moonfall

That sole win came at Newbury in June 2025, when jockey Billy Loughnane noted that Moonfall had a flat spot midway through the race before staying on strongly. The key detail was the trip: stepping up in distance on a flat, galloping track suited him perfectly, and Loughnane was clear afterwards that Moonfall needs every yard of the distance to show his best. Crucially, he also suggested the horse would handle quick, dry ground just as well — pointing to his half-brother Soprano as evidence that the family handles a fast surface without any problem.

Recent form tells an interesting story. His last five races read 5-7-1-3-2 in reverse chronological order, meaning his two most recent efforts have both been placed finishes after that win. The slight dip to fifth and seventh that preceded his Newbury victory now looks less concerning in context — Boughey has explained that the horse was simply not right following a below-par run in the Superlative Stakes, a top race that clearly caught him at the wrong moment. Once the team found their way back to a flat track and a longer trip, the real Moonfall reappeared.

Boughey, who has sent out an impressive 99 winners already this season, has drawn a direct comparison between Moonfall and Celeborn, a horse from his yard last year who followed a similar trajectory. The race being talked about as a target is the Britannia at Royal Ascot — a competitive mile race run on fast ground over a straight, flat track, which sounds tailor-made for everything Loughnane described. For a horse who has only just started to find his feet, that is a serious ambition — and at a yard operating at this level, it is not an idle one.