Belvedere Blast

The most interesting thing about this horse is how well it performs at Hexham, a tight, undulating track in Northumberland where plenty of horses never get comfortable. Belvedere Blast has won 3 of its 6 races there — that is half its career wins at a single course, which is a remarkable level of affection for one particular place. Its first career win came there back in June 2022, and it has clearly never forgotten the way round. Normal ground suits it best too: 6 of its 7 wins, from 26 races on standard conditions, a win rate of roughly 1 in 4. When the conditions are right, this horse delivers.

Keatley knows exactly what he has. He has spoken openly about how Belvedere Blast operates in cycles — when the handicapper rates it around 100, it wins two or three races and climbs the weights, then stalls when it gets up towards 115 and the competition becomes too stiff. It is a pattern plenty of horses fall into, but the fact that Belvedere Blast keeps finding its way back to winning form is the point. Its most recent win came at Market Rasen in August 2025, and Keatley noted afterwards that a slower pace helped the horse settle and finish strongly — they had tried different tactics, different distances, different headgear before finding the right combination that day. "This is his level," the trainer said simply, and that honesty is almost refreshing.

Henry Brooke, who rides it most regularly, has a particularly strong record in the saddle — 3 wins from 9 races together, meaning the pair click roughly 1 in every 3 times out. That is a notably strong partnership for a horse competing mainly at Class 4 level, where the win rate across all rides is just 4 from 32. Belvedere Blast raced just yesterday and has not won in its last six outings, so the handicapper may currently have the upper hand — but given what we know about this horse, that is unlikely to be the final word.