Tough Enough

The story of Tough Enough is one of promise that has been tricky to sustain. Brittain spoke warmly about him back in April 2023, recalling how the horse arrived from Dubai's breeze-up sales and steadily improved through his early races, eventually breaking his duck at Wolverhampton in November 2022. That first win on the all-weather — the synthetic, sand-based tracks that race year-round regardless of weather — seemed to do him real good mentally, and Brittain noted he had physically filled out too. A horse coming into himself, in other words. He backed that up with a second win at Sandown Park in August 2023. The problem is that was 33 months ago, and he hasn't got back to the winner's enclosure since.

One thing Brittain flagged early: Tough Enough doesn't like racing on wet, muddy ground. He got bogged down at Nottingham in those conditions and it showed. That's a useful bit of knowledge for anyone following him — when the ground firms up, he becomes a more interesting proposition.

His best performances have come in Class 4 races, the bread-and-butter level of the sport, where he's won 2 from 9 — roughly 1 in every 4 or 5 starts at that level, which is a decent return. His regular partner in the saddle has been jockey Cam Hardie, but that combination hasn't clicked yet: zero wins from eight rides together. Sometimes a pairing just doesn't quite work on paper, even when both horse and rider are capable.

Brittain's yard has sent out 22 winners this season, so the operation is ticking over well. Tough Enough remains active, which suggests the team still believes there's a race to be won with him. Whether he can rediscover that Sandown form from nearly three years ago is the question.