Nuptown Girl

The recent form gives some cause for optimism. A second-place finish two runs back shows she can mix it at the sharp end, and she raced just yesterday, meaning she is very much in active campaigning mode. At Class 4, which represents a solid mid-tier level of competition, she has gone winless from five attempts, though the placed efforts suggest the gap between her and the winner is not always a wide one.

She is trained by Ian Williams at his yard in Alvechurch, Worcestershire — and that is worth noting. Williams has sent out 91 winners already this season, which is a serious tally and marks his operation as one that knows how to get a horse to the track in winning form. The fact that a trainer of that calibre keeps running Nuptown Girl suggests the team believes there is a winning performance in her somewhere. Patient yards with strong win records do not keep running horses for the fun of it. When her moment comes, it will likely come in the hands of people who know exactly what they are doing.