Queen Of Newark

Trained by Matthew J Smith out of Kilmessan in County Meath, she at least finds herself in a yard that knows how to win. Smith's team has sent out 8 winners already this season, so the infrastructure and knowhow are there. The question is whether Queen Of Newark can tap into it. She raced just yesterday, which tells you the team are keeping her busy and haven't given up on finding the right opportunity.

What the form figures do show is a horse that has gone backwards recently — that sequence of tenth, eleventh, and a thirteenth before the latest run is not encouraging reading. The third place is now the furthest back in the record, a reminder of a moment when things looked more promising. At three years old there is still time to turn it around, but she will need to find improvement quickly if she is going to get off the mark.