Ancient Times

The most eye-catching detail on the profile is Doncaster. Two wins from just four races there means Ancient Times has won half its visits to that track, and in racing, that kind of affinity with a specific course is genuinely unusual. Most horses are consistent wherever they run; the ones that light up at a particular venue tend to do so for reasons that aren't always obvious — something about the shape of the track, the camber of the bends, the way the ground rides. Whatever it is, Doncaster brings out the best in this horse, and any time Ancient Times is declared to run there, it's worth paying attention.

The other pattern worth knowing: fast, dry ground. On that surface, Ancient Times has won 2 from 11 races — roughly 1 in every 5 or 6 — compared to a much thinner record elsewhere. That 18% win rate on quick ground is more than double the career average, which tells you the conditions aren't incidental. When the weather has been kind and the ground is dry and fast, this horse is a different proposition.

Trained by Harry Eustace out of Newmarket, the yard is in solid form this season with 24 winners already sent out. Ancient Times is most often partnered by Hayley Turner, though their record together is modest — 1 win from 13 races, or roughly 1 in every 13 — suggesting the combination hasn't always clicked. The last win came at Catterick Bridge in May 2025, now 14 months ago, and the last six runs have produced nothing better than a sixth place. The recent form figures make for grim reading: 12th, 6th, 10th, 10th, 13th, 2nd, with only that runner-up spot offering any encouragement.

Ancient Times raced just one day ago, so this is a horse very much in active campaign. The question now is whether the yard can find the right conditions — ideally fast ground, ideally Doncaster — to coax another win out of a horse that has shown, in its better moments, it absolutely knows how to deliver one.