Beverley

The best career win rate in the field at roughly 1 in every 6 races, and Evelyn's Phoenix arrives here in the form of its life — a win at Nottingham followed by a close second at Leicester in the last two outings. The only flag is that this horse has never won at Beverley in six attempts, so the course itself remains an unanswered question.

Cloch Nua is drawn in stall one, which based on this course and distance has produced just 10% of winners from 365 races — the least favourable part of the track. The horse is drawn on the wrong side. A third-place finish at Newcastle 14 days ago shows some recent life, but all six of its career wins have come on standard ground, and today's slightly soft surface is somewhere it has never won.

Law Degree has won twice from nine races on soft ground — the best soft-ground win rate of any horse in this field — but today's ground is only slightly soft, and this horse has never won on slightly soft, good-to-soft, good, fast, or standard ground across 34 career races. It has also won at Beverley before, giving it rare course form, but an eighth-place finish at Nottingham 16 days ago suggests it's not in its best form right now.

Far Ahead's last three runs have all resulted in finishes of 12th or worse, which is concerning form coming into a competitive race. This horse has never raced on slightly soft ground, so today's conditions are a complete unknown, and its entire career record shows zero wins from nine races on left-handed, galloping tracks — Beverley fits that description. Very hard to make a case for on current evidence.

The longest absence in the field by some distance — Bantz hasn't raced for 196 days, and the last three runs before that break were all in the bottom half of the field. Horses returning from a long layoff can sometimes show up fresh and ready, but two wins from 25 career races gives little reason for confidence. One to watch for fitness rather than back with money.

The most experienced horse in the field with 71 races, Dandy's Angel has an outstanding record at Beverley specifically — six wins from 31 visits here, which is the best course record of any runner today. The problem is that those Beverley wins have largely come on much worse ground, and this horse has won just once from 21 races on good ground, making today's slightly soft surface uncertain territory. Recent form is uninspiring, but the course record alone makes her worth noting.

Eighteen races without a win, and Nakatomi has never raced on slightly soft ground before, so today is genuinely uncharted territory for this four-year-old. Recent form — sixth, fifth, ninth — doesn't inspire confidence, though the horse has been running consistently rather than trailing at the back of the field. There's simply not enough evidence to suggest a first win is coming here.

Twenty-five races into her career and Penny Ghent has never won — she's the joint-winless runner with the lowest official rating in the field. She does carry the lightest weight here, which is an advantage in a competitive race like this, but recent form shows she's been finishing in the bottom half of fields. The weight allowance is a minor plus, but the record makes it hard to argue a case.

Drawn in the highest stall in the field at 15, which at this course and distance has historically produced the most winners — an 18% win rate — so the draw is actually the most interesting thing about Rajawail's chances today. However, this horse has never won in 25 career races and has never won in eight visits to Beverley, making it very hard to see that changing here. Racing again after just five days and rated 6lbs below the field average.

Back on course after just five days, which is a rapid turnaround, and the last six runs have all ended in ninth, tenth, or eleventh place. Twenty-nine races without a win, and the recent form shows a horse typically finishing near the back of the pack rather than challenging at the front. Very difficult to make a case for at odds of 51.