Ufouria

That win, on the 17th of January, came as a genuine surprise — even to the people closest to the horse. Alastair Ralph, who trains Ufouria out of his yard in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, admitted he could barely believe how easily she won. For a horse that had clearly had her problems over the years, it was the kind of performance that makes a trainer sit up straight. Ralph was blunt about it: she's a smart horse, she's had issues, but recently she's started putting it all together at home, and he clearly likes what he sees. That is the kind of quiet confidence from a trainer that is worth paying attention to.

Ralph's yard has sent out 25 winners this season, so this is not an operation short of form or ability. The fact that he is enthusiastic enough about Ufouria to have been pointing her towards a Cheltenham run — one of the biggest stages in jump racing — if she could follow up at Fairyhouse tells you something. Trainers do not float the idea of Cheltenham for horses they are simply trying to place.

The honest side of the ledger, though, is that she has not won since Cork — now sixteen months ago — and has gone six races without a victory. At the level she typically competes at, she has managed zero wins from four attempts, which suggests she finds it genuinely tough to get her head in front on a consistent basis. One win from thirteen races means she has won roughly 1 in every 13 times out, and three placed finishes alongside that suggests a horse that is often competitive but rarely decisive.

Still, she raced just a day ago and remains active, which means the story is still being written. For a horse of her age, with a trainer who clearly believes in her and a breakthrough win already on the board, Ufouria is the sort of horse that rewards people who pay attention. Whether she can rediscover that Cork form is the question — but the fact that question is even worth asking says something in itself.