Tellherthename

Both wins came at Huntingdon, in November 2023 and then January 2024, and both came over distances between a mile and a half and two miles — the sweet spot where this horse clearly does its best work. Over five races at that range, it has won twice, which is a remarkable 40%, or 2 from 5. That is the kind of number that turns heads. Find Tellherthename at the right distance on the right day and it is a genuinely competitive horse. The problem is that the right day has not come around for 28 months now. Since January 2024, it has gone six races without a win, and recent form — finishing eighth last time out — does not immediately suggest that drought is about to end.

What complicates the picture further is that Tellherthename has been competing mostly at the very highest level of British racing, and has drawn a blank in all four of those appearances. That is no disgrace — Class 1 races represent the elite end of the sport — but it does raise an honest question about whether the top table is where this horse truly belongs, or whether a step back down in class might unlock something.

Dan Skelton trains the horse from his yard in Alcester, Warwickshire — one of the most productive operations in Britain right now, having sent out 194 winners already this season. That kind of volume means Skelton knows exactly what he has in his care, and his own words are revealing: he has described Tellherthename as "an unbelievably class horse" while also acknowledging a chequered recent history and the effort it took to get the horse back on track after a setback at Aintree. The jockey Kielan Woods has been aboard for 10 of the 11 races, and the pair have clicked for both wins — a partnership worth keeping an eye on.

Tellherthename raced just yesterday, so this is a horse very much in the thick of an active campaign. The talent is clearly there. The question is whether Skelton can coax it back to the form that made Huntingdon feel like a second home.