Raintown

His overall record of 8 wins from 47 races — roughly 1 in every 6 — might sound modest, but the detail behind it is what makes him interesting. Moore has been clear about it: Raintown is an all-weather horse. On fast, dry grass he simply does not reproduce the form he shows on the artificial surface at tracks like Lingfield. He won well there by five lengths and was raised to a rating of 75 off the back of it, which means the authorities now make him carry more weight than before. Moore's view is that he is still ahead of that assessment on the all-weather — in other words, the handicapper has not quite caught up with how good he can be on that surface — and the trainer believes there are nice races still to be won on it.

Raintown has not won in his last 6 races, with recent finishes reading 4th, 3rd, 8th, 7th, 8th, and 5th. That third place is encouraging and keeps him competitive, but the wins have dried up since Newbury last July. The key question is always what surface he is running on. Taylor Fisher rides him most often — they have partnered for 12 races together with 2 wins, a win rate of 17%, or roughly 1 in every 6 — and that familiarity matters on a horse with a specific set of preferences. The yard itself is in decent form, sending out 17 winners already this season, so the ammunition is there. Watch for Raintown next time he lines up on the all-weather at Lingfield. That is when this horse becomes a very different proposition.