Wemightakedlongway

That Navan win was worth paying attention to. O'Brien had deliberately pitched her against colts in her two previous races — tougher company than most horses at her level face — so when the rain arrived and the yard switched plans from Chester to Navan, she had something to prove. She delivered it impressively. The trainer was candid afterwards: he had been running her hard and in difficult fields, and he felt her fifth-place finish in the Ballysax on her seasonal return was better than it looked on paper. A horse that holds its own against colts and then wins impressively when the opportunity arrives is one that is quietly building toward something.

Her sweet spot appears to be around a mile and a quarter. She has won 1 of her 3 races at that sort of trip, a 33% win rate that stands well above her overall record. It is a small sample, but it points in a clear direction. Dylan Browne McMonagle has been her regular rider, partnering her in 8 of her 10 races and winning 2 of them — a 25% win rate together, which is a strong ratio and suggests a settled, trusted partnership.

O'Brien has the Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh firmly in his sights as the race she is being aimed at. That is one of the top mile-and-a-quarter races for horses of her age in Ireland, and the fact that a yard that has sent out 154 winners this season is pointing her specifically at that target says everything about how highly she is regarded internally. Wemightakedlongway has raced only 10 times in her life. She is still learning, still improving, and — given she raced just four days ago — very much in the thick of her season. The long road, it turns out, may be heading somewhere rather good.