Riskintheground

The 2025–26 season has been the making of this horse at the highest level. A Class 2 win at Ayr in April 2025 was followed almost immediately by a Class 1 victory at Cheltenham — one of the top races in Britain, at the sport's most famous venue. Dan Skelton, the trainer, had clearly had that Cheltenham race circled on the calendar for some time, admitting afterwards that he had always had it in mind and that, in the circumstances, he decided to press on and run. It paid off brilliantly. Skelton noted that Riskintheground had always been the type to improve once switched to chasing, and that improvement has been obvious to anyone watching. Then, just this week, the horse added another win at Haydock Park, confirming that the form is no fluke.

At the top level — Class 1 races — the record reads 1 win from 11 attempts, which sounds modest. But Skelton is realistic about that: the handicapper has the horse high enough, he says, and yet the experience of competing regularly in that company is itself an asset. The horse knows the job. It has been there, felt the pressure, and still delivered on the biggest day of the festival calendar.

Much of this story runs through the Skelton family operation. Harry Skelton, Dan's brother, has ridden this horse in 27 of its 38 races and has won on it 7 times — a win rate of 26%, or just over 1 in every 4 rides together. That kind of long-standing partnership between horse and jockey matters: Harry knows exactly what Riskintheground needs. Dan Skelton's yard at Alcester has sent out 194 winners this season alone, so the horse is operating within one of the sharpest training outfits in the country. Riskintheground raced just yesterday, and it is hard to think of a more timely moment to be paying attention to it.