Au Plaisir

Trained by Rebecca Menzies at her yard in Morden, County Durham, Au Plaisir operates at Class 4 level — the kind of races where the competition is solid but not elite. The problem is that even at this level, the wins have not come: no victories from four races in this grade. That said, Menzies has had a productive season, sending out 35 winners from her yard, which shows this is a team that knows how to get horses to win. The fact that Au Plaisir has not broken through yet is something of a puzzle, though it may simply be a horse still waiting for the right day and the right conditions to click into place.

Having raced just yesterday, Au Plaisir is clearly an active and well-campaigned horse right now. Whether another run comes quickly or the yard — sorry, whether the yard decides to give it a short break — remains to be seen. For a horse with a single placing to its name from eight outings, patience is clearly part of the plan. Racing fans will know the type: a horse that fills places without winning, always close enough to keep hope alive, but never quite delivering. The next few races will be telling.