Mr Vango

And the top of the sport is genuinely where Mr Vango has been operating. Six of his races have come at Class 1 level — the very best races in Britain — and he has won 2 of them, a rate of 1 in 3. That is not a horse who has drifted up through the grades and found himself out of his depth. That is a horse who belongs there. His Class 1 wins at Haydock Park in January 2025 and Uttoxeter in March 2025, plus a Class 2 win at Sandown Park in December 2024, represent a purple patch across the winter that very few horses of any age could match. Three wins at the top two levels of racing across four months is a genuine achievement.

Haydock Park seems to bring out something special in him. He has raced there 3 times and won twice — a track record that suggests he genuinely thrives on the course rather than just happening to show up on a good day. His very first win came at Haydock back in November 2022, and he returned there to win a Class 1 race in January 2025. Some horses just click with a particular track, and Mr Vango is one of them.

Jockey Jack Tudor has been part of the story too. The pair have raced together 7 times and won on 3 occasions — that is a win rate of 43%, or almost 3 in every 7 races. In a sport where jockey-horse combinations can take time to gel, that is a partnership that has clearly found a rhythm.

Trained by Sara Bradstock at her yard in Wantage, Oxfordshire — a yard that has sent out 4 winners this season — Mr Vango is a horse in the form of his life at an age when many would have already retired. His recent run of two wins and a place from his last three completed races tells you everything about where he is right now.