Ballybaymoonshiner

Those two wins have both come at distances between seven furlongs and a mile, where the record reads 2 wins from 11 races — that is winning roughly 1 in every 5 or 6 races at those trips, compared to nothing at all elsewhere. For a horse of this level, that kind of clear distance preference is genuinely useful information. It is not versatile — it is a specialist, and at the right trip it becomes a different animal. Class 6 is where it spends most of its time, which is the entry level of professional racing in Britain, and its two wins have both come at that level from 23 attempts.

The most recent win came at Chelmsford on 22 May 2025, and the form since then has been mixed — finishing eighth and sixth in its two most recent races after that victory. Before the win, it had finished third, suggesting the horse was building into form before it delivered. Shane Kelly has been in the saddle for 16 of its 26 races, a remarkable level of commitment to a partnership that has produced just 1 win together. That is a 6% win rate — roughly 1 from every 16 rides — but jockeys do not keep coming back to horses they do not believe in.

Trainer Murty McGrath operates out of East Malling in Kent and has sent out one winner this season, so this is a small, modest yard rather than a powerhouse operation. When Ballybaymoonshiner won at Chelmsford just over a year ago, it would have meant a great deal. The first career win had come at Kempton Park in January 2024, so two wins in 2024 and 2025 suggests the horse has found a level it can compete at. Last raced just one day ago, it is very much still active — and at seven furlongs to a mile, it remains a horse worth keeping an eye on.