Rob Roy Macgregor

Trainer Sandy Thomson, who operates out of Lambden in Berwickshire and has sent out 18 winners already this season, has been unusually candid about the challenge Rob Roy Macgregor has presented. The horse is by Walk In The Park and, by Thomson's own account, has never been the easiest to get ready — the yard has deliberately avoided pushing him too hard at home for fear of sending him over the edge mentally. The strategy has essentially been to let the racecourse do the schooling, using competitive runs to build him rather than hard work on the gallops. That tells you something important: this is a horse whose temperament has shaped every decision made around him.

The Carlisle win in his early career looked like a springboard, but a subsequent run at Hexham — a course Thomson admits did not suit him — took some of the shine off. He has pulled hard at times and needed careful management ever since. His recent form, however, is quietly encouraging: placed second twice and third once in his last six completed outings, suggesting he is running consistently without quite finding that final gear to win.

Most of his racing has come at Class 5 level, the entry-level tier of British racing, where he has won 1 of his 12 races at that grade — roughly 1 in every 12, which is workmanlike at best. Regular partner Ryan Mania has ridden him in 9 of those races for that single win, a win rate of about 1 in every 9 rides together. He raced just yesterday, so he is very much in active training and his team clearly believe there is another winning day in him somewhere. At eight years old, the clock is not entirely against him — but the window is not wide open either.