The Boola Boss

The bulk of his career has been spent in Class 4 races — the workmanlike middle tier of the sport — where he has won 4 of his 17 outings at that level. That's a win rate of 24%, which sounds modest until you consider that most horses at this level are trying to beat a dozen rivals on any given day. What he does particularly well is show up at Worcester, where he has won 2 of his 3 races. Two wins from three visits to any track is the kind of record that gets people paying attention, and it was at Worcester, on 11 June 2022, that he got his career off the mark.

His trainer Rebecca Curtis, based at Newport in Pembrokeshire, knows exactly what this horse needs — and it's a specific recipe. Flat track, normal ground, and a trip of around two miles six furlongs. His jockey Sean Bowen, who has won 2 of their 7 races together (a 29% win rate, well above average), has been equally clear: go shorter and the distance doesn't suit him; go longer and he gets stretched. Get those conditions right, though, and the horse produces. His most recent win, at Chepstow on 11 April, suggests the team are still finding those conditions and still timing their runs well.

Curtis's yard has sent out 18 winners this season, so The Boola Boss is part of a stable that is genuinely firing. What stands out beyond the statistics is what Curtis said earlier this year — that in all his time at the yard, he has never once fallen. For a horse that has now contested 25 races over jumps, that is a remarkable record of clean, safe jumping. He's a big horse, he's ten years old, and he has no interest in doing anything the hard way. At this stage of his career, that reliability might be the most valuable thing about him.