Tai Tam Bay

That sole career victory came at Naas on 29 April 2024, now some 25 months ago, and it remains the high point of a career that has plateaued since. The recent run of form — finishing 4th, 3rd, 4th, 2nd, 5th, and 16th across the last six races — shows a horse hovering around the places without quite breaking through. The 16th-place finish in the most recent run stands out as a rough day at the office, though the second and third placings in between suggest there is still competitive life here.

Tai Tam Bay does most of its racing over short distances, between five and six-and-a-half furlongs, which suits horses with pace rather than stamina. Across 19 races at those trips, there has been just the 1 win, a return of 5% — meaning the horse has won roughly 1 in every 19 races at its preferred distances. That is a modest record, but those trips are almost certainly where any future success would come from. Chris Hayes has been the most regular partner in the saddle, riding the horse in 12 of its races for that same solitary win together, a rate of 8% — better than the overall career average, but still a partnership that has yet to really click.

Trained by Eddie and Patrick Harty out of Curragh, Co Kildare, Tai Tam Bay is part of a yard that has sent out 17 winners this season, so the operation clearly knows how to get horses winning. The horse raced just yesterday and remains active, which means the yard — the yard, rather — have not given up on finding another moment like Naas in the spring of 2024. Whether that moment comes again is the question.