Uncle Phil

The highlight of his career came at Fairyhouse in January 2024, when he landed what his trainer Chester Williams described as "a lovely big pot" — a Grade 3 chase worth picking up. That was 28 months ago, and Uncle Phil hasn't won since, but that single result tells you a lot about his ceiling. Grade 3 is serious company, and horses who win at that level have real quality. Williams, whose yard in Devon has sent out 10 winners this season, is clearly happy to keep aiming Uncle Phil at similar targets — the hope being that the right day, the right ground, and another slick round of jumping will bring another big one.

That jumping is the key to understanding this horse. Jockey Paul Townend, who has ridden him to 2 wins from 8 races together — a 25% win rate, or 1 in every 4 — was effusive after Fairyhouse, pointing out that Uncle Phil's jumping was so fluent it put pressure on every horse behind him and the drying ground helped matters along. Townend also noted that Uncle Phil flopped at Wexford but bounced back sharply at Listowel, suggesting that track shape genuinely matters: he thrives on tracks where his jumping style gives him a natural rhythm and an edge.

He raced just yesterday, which shows he is fit and active, though his recent form reads 7-4-3-6-7 — competitive enough, but a horse clearly looking for things to click back into place. At the top level, he has managed 0 wins from 4 races in Class 3 company, so he hasn't dominated there consistently. But Williams isn't chasing rainbows — the plan is straightforward: find the right race, get some decent ground underfoot, trust the jumping, and see if Uncle Phil has one more big day left in him. Given his track record, it would be unwise to bet against it.