Archduke Ferdinand

What really stands out is his record at Redcar. Three wins from just four visits is the kind of consistency that makes a trainer's job easier. His last victory came there four weeks ago, and that's the sort of course where a horse like this can be genuinely dangerous. He also shows promise over his favoured distances of 1m1f to 1m2f, winning once from four attempts at those trips. When you combine his track preference with his ground preference, Redcar on a firm day looks like a perfect storm in his favour.

His recent form shows the sort of peaks and troughs you'd expect from a horse at his level. Second place and fourth place finishes in his last six runs suggest he remains competitive, even if the wins have dried up since late July. Seb Spencer's Malton yard has been doing solid work this season, and Dale Swift, his most frequent rider, has partnered him to three victories from 27 races together. Archduke Ferdinand may not be a headline-maker, but he's the kind of honest, consistent campaigner who finds his moment when everything lines up just right.