Saturnalia

His two wins both came on normal ground, and both came at distances between 7 furlongs and a mile — a combination that has produced wins in 2 of his 10 races at those trips (20%), which is a meaningful hit rate at this level. His first win came at Wolverhampton in January 2023, and his most recent at Lingfield Park in August of that year. That was 33 months ago now, and the search for a third win has been a long one since.

Trainer J S Moore, based at Upper Lambourn in Berkshire, has spoken about the journey that brought Saturnalia to the track. The horse was gelded before his debut, didn't make his first racecourse appearance until Lingfield over a mile, and finished second that day. It was the drop back to seven furlongs that unlocked him — he won next time out at Wolverhampton. There were encouraging moments after that, including a neck second at Kempton. His yard has been in decent nick this season, sending out 17 winners, so there is no shortage of confidence around the team.

Recent form, though, is hard to dress up. His last six runs read 6-12-8-8-11-11, and his last three outings on turf in particular have been disappointing. Moore is candid about that, and has him down to run at Newbury shortly — hoping the switch back to a track and conditions that suit him can spark a revival. Whether that is realistic after more than two and a half years without a win is the question every punter will be asking. For now, Saturnalia remains what he has mostly always been: a solid, honest racehorse operating at the lower end of the sport, occasionally doing enough to remind you why the team keeps running him.