Alpha Capture

What's telling is where Alpha Capture races now. In Class 2 company — still competitive and well-run races, but a tier below that York victory — it has failed to win in six attempts. Its most recent win came at Doncaster on 14 June, more than four months ago, and form since has been patchy: two second-place finishes within that sequence, but also some well-beaten efforts. Last time out, just yesterday, it finished tenth. Tom Marquand, the jockey most often aboard, has piloted the horse to two wins from nine rides together, a respectable 22% return, suggesting there is a decent partnership there on days when things work.

Roger Fell's yard at Nawton has been productive this season with 25 winners to its name, so Alpha Capture is in a capable operation. But the horse itself appears to be a solid middle-ranking performer now — capable of occasional victories in decent races, but no longer the kind of runner that wins regularly or consistently threatens at the very top. Whether it can rediscover form and get back to winning ways remains to be seen, though four months without a victory suggests it may have settled into its current level.