Zapphire

The headline number is four wins from 23 races — roughly one in every six — but the stat that really tells the story is what happens when the ground dries out. On fast, dry ground, Zapphire has won three of her seven races, a 43% win rate that is frankly exceptional. For context, most good horses win about one in five on their best surface. When conditions suit her, she doesn't just perform better — she becomes a different animal. Her first career win came at Haydock in August 2023, and her most recent at Windsor in August 2025, suggesting she saves her best for summer.

Camacho's yard has been in excellent form this season, sending out 46 winners, which gives Zapphire a strong base of support to return to. Tom Kiely-Marshall has ridden her nine times and won once together — not a sparkling record, but Camacho is clearly thinking bigger. She's hinted at targeting a higher grade of race, partly because stepping up in class would mean Zapphire isn't lumbered with top weight every time out, which is a real handicap to a horse's chances. The team also has one eye on a fillies' race at Leopardstown, particularly if it rains — and given what we know about her record on dry ground, that enthusiasm for soft conditions is a notable shift worth monitoring.

What makes Zapphire genuinely compelling heading into her return is the sense that she's been a little unlucky recently. At Beverley, her jockey got trapped with nowhere to go and she was beaten by a neck — a race the team believe she should have won. Her last six results include a win, a second, and a third, so the form is there. She hasn't run a bad race in a long time. Seven months is a significant break, and there's always an unknown when a horse returns, but Camacho has the winners on the board this season to suggest the yard knows what it's doing. When the sun's out, Zapphire is one to watch.