American Rose

Her two wins tell an interesting story. The first came at Wolverhampton in December 2022, and the second at Lingfield Park in August 2024 — both indoor all-weather tracks, which suggests she performs best when conditions are controlled and predictable. On normal ground, she has won 2 of 19 races, which works out at roughly 1 in 10, a solid enough record on that surface. But that Lingfield win is now 19 months ago, and in the six races since, she has not come close to repeating it. Her recent form reads 8-3-2-2-7-6 — a couple of near misses buried in there, but also some performances where she simply didn't feature.

Most of her racing has come at Class 6 level, which is the entry level of British racing — the bread and butter end of the sport where the prize money is modest and the fields are full of horses in similar circumstances. She has won just 1 of her 25 races at that level, which is a reminder that even at the lowest tier, winning is hard. Jockey Joe Leavy has ridden her eight times and won once together — roughly 1 in 8 — and trainer James Evans, based in Worcestershire, has sent out eight winners this season, so the yard is in decent form.

After a 33-day break, American Rose comes back with something to prove. She is six years old, experienced, and clearly knows her way around a racecourse. The question is whether there is another win in her — and if her two previous victories are anything to go by, an all-weather track on a normal racing surface gives her the best possible chance of answering yes.