Walking On Air

His first came at Newbury in January 2022, and at the time the excitement around him was considerable. Nicky Henderson — one of the most celebrated trainers in the sport — spoke after that race about a horse with a big future, one who would "jump a fence and might be very exciting in a year or two." His regular rider Nico de Boinville was equally enthusiastic, convinced the horse would stay longer distances. The kind of language used about Walking On Air after Newbury was the language people use about horses they expect to matter.

He followed that up with a win in a top-two race at Exeter in February 2023 — one of the better races in the British calendar — which suggested the promise was genuine. But that Exeter victory, now 39 months ago, remains his most recent win. Since then he has had six races without adding to his tally, his recent form showing a fifth, two seconds, and a third scattered among blank runs. Not disgraced, but not delivering either.

He is now trained by Faye Bramley at Lambourn, a yard that has sent out 19 winners this season and is clearly in good form. When Bramley spoke about Walking On Air in early 2024, she was candid: she has always liked the horse but acknowledged he is a big, physical animal — and big horses, she noted, tend to encounter more setbacks than smaller ones. The hint of untapped potential was still there in her words, even as she chose them carefully. With Nico de Boinville in the saddle, Walking On Air wins 2 from 5 — 40% — which is a striking number and suggests the partnership genuinely suits him. He raced just yesterday, so he is clearly in training and active. Whether he can translate that Class 2 ceiling into something more consistent remains the question his career has never quite answered.